The Bio-Medical Management and Handling Rules, specifies that bio-medical waste should be dumped at a place, which is at least 2.5 km from the hospital, and should be treated in a waste disposal place. Without proper mechanism to dispose of bio-medical waste, the hospitals in South Kashmir are increasing the risk of life-threatening infections. Different hospitals mostly remain littered with used syringes, needles, plastic items, bandages and empty medicine and saline bottles as the biomedical facility which has been tasked to do the job, does not clear the hazardous waste regularly.
Same is the case with other District and subdistrict hospitals of Kulgam, Pulwama and Shopian. “It is an irony that the District Hospital, which caters to a huge rush of patients daily is surrounded by bio-medical wastes,” said an attendant of a patient admitted in the hospital. He said that the dustbins…
