The Dehradun-based student activist group, Making A Difference By Being The Difference (MAD), has alleged that the Municipal Corporation of Dehradun and the authorities concerned are not properly monitoring the disposal of bio-medical waste in the city.
MAD members were conducting their weekly clean-up drives and awareness activity this Sunday. However, the activity had to be halted in between. Amidst heavy rain, as two dozen members from MAD gathered to clean up this dump near Araghar Chowk not far from a number of hospitals, members started stumbling upon discarded syringes, bandages and blood samples. As rain continued to pour, members were shocked that even open needles had been found and that no effort had been made to dispose these dangerous waste items of properly.
According to MAD members, after the Supreme Court intervention, there are strict rules for bio medical waste management and all hospitals are required to compulsorily comply with them. “It’s a matter of great tragedy that in their own money making pursuits certain hospitals are not complying with these stipulations and disposing their wastes openly. What is even more worrisome is the fact that these items were not found inside the dustbin but on the road,” said the group members.
MAD members expressed their deep concerns about the consequences that would have already accrued to many local residents and particularly poor sections of societies such as waste cleaners and those in the waste recycling trade who could have been harmed by such open syringes and used needles. The same concern also extends to stray dogs and other stray animals who regularly visit such garbage hotspots in search of food.
Given the seriousness of the issue MAD members completed their drive and headed for the municipal corporation of Dehradun. As it was Sunday with most of the offices being closed, the MAD members met with the official who was there on campus and handed over discarded blood samples and other waste items that were collected along with syringes and bandages from the dump. MAD had also prepared extensive photo and video record of what was found.
“It should be noted here that there are a number of medical institutes in the area and therefore pinpointing to anyone without proof will not be easy. Therefore the need of the hour is to investigate the real source of waste and to ensure that it does not find its way to the streets again. There is a particular need to ensure proper monitoring of even small local medical institutions to ensure overall public health safety and hygiene,” the group members stressed. The members who were present in the activity included the group’s founding president Abhijay Negi, Shardul Aswal, Vinod Bagiyal, Ayush Joshi, Pallavi Bhatia, Prerna Rawat and Saurav Joshi among others.