Chennai, Dec 20 (IANS) The southern bench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed the Kerala government to retrieve medical waste recently dumped at Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu.
The bench, comprising Justice Pushpa Sathyanarayana and expert member Sathyagopal Korlapti, ordered the removal of the waste within three days.
The waste is to be sent to authorised treatment facilities in Kerala or Tamil Nadu, or returned to Kerala if no suitable facility is found in Tamil Nadu.
The Kerala State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) has been instructed to file a compliance report by December 23, the next date of hearing.
The tribunal was hearing a suo motu case on Thursday concerning the dumping of biomedical waste in villages bordering Tirunelveli.
It was observed that the waste had been discarded in forest areas, posing a threat to wildlife.
The tribunal also noted that the waste originated from the Regional Cancer Centre (RCC) in Thiruvananthapuram and other establishments in Kerala.
Tamil Nadu government pleader D. Shanmuganathan pointed out that the KSPCB had not complied with an earlier order issued by the tribunal.
This order had pertained to the matter of biomedical waste dumped on the roadside in Nanguneri. The NGT had directed the KSPCB to reimburse Rs 69,000 spent by the local body to clear the waste.
The reimbursement has reportedly not been made. The pleader informed the Bench that the fresh waste dumped in Tirunelveli villages had also not been removed.
Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) counsel Sai Sathya Jith stated that pollution control officials inspected the site on December 17.
The chairperson of the TNPCB subsequently wrote to the chairperson of the KSPCB on December 18, demanding legal action against the RCC and other violators.
Sai Sathya Jith further apprised the bench that two FIRs have been filed against those responsible for the dumping.
KSPCB counsel V.K. Remasmrithi admitted that the waste originated in Kerala but claimed that unauthorised waste collectors, not affiliated with the Kerala government, were responsible for the dumping.
She added that show-cause notices had been issued to the RCC and other establishments involved.
She also argued that the TNPCB’s demands were being addressed.
However, the Tamil Nadu government pleader expressed frustration over the ongoing dumping of waste, which he said had been a recurring issue from Anaimalai to Nanguneri and now to Tirunelveli, despite multiple interventions.
He urged the tribunal to issue a strong warning to deter further incidents.
On Wednesday, in a related case, the NGT had directed Kerala to pay the costs incurred by the Tamil Nadu government in clearing dumped waste.
During the proceedings, the KSPCB admitted that Kerala has only one biomedical waste treatment facility, which is inadequate to handle the state’s waste.
The Bench questioned why the Kerala government was permitting hospitals to operate without ensuring adequate waste processing facilities.
The NGT also directed the KSPCB to submit a detailed report on the total quantity of biomedical waste generated in Kerala and the capacity of its treatment facilities.
–IANS
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