Assam to introduce bar-codes for scientific biomedical waste disposal

Assam to introduce bar-codes for scientific biomedical waste disposal

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: With an aim to compel all hospitals to adhere to norms of scientific disposal of biomedical waste, the Pollution Control Board, Assam (PCBA) has decided to introduce a bar-code system for such disposal.

The move has come close on the heels of incidents of untreated biomedical waste dumped in open grounds and drains by both private and government hospitals in different parts of the State came to the light. Such an incident recently took place at Hatishila in the Panikhaiti area on the city outskirts.

Official sources told The Sentinel that the proposed bar-code system would be an effective tool in addressing the perennial issue of who is generating biomedical waste and where is the waste getting disposed. The proposed system will be based on the cradle-to-grave concept, which means you can actually track the entire lifecycle of biomedical waste, the source said.

“Need for the barcoded system was felt for tracking of waste from source of generation to final destination for final treatment and disposal, identification of waste in the event of the source of generation in case waste is disposed improperly and quantification of biomedical waste generated,” a PCBA official said.

The Central Pollution Control Board under the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has come out with draft guidelines on a ‘Bar Code System’ for proper disposal of the biomedical waste. The guidelines have been prepared for ensuring effective enforcement of the Biomedical Waste Management Rules, 2016 notified in March 2016. The proposed bar-code system will have to be implemented by all States within March 31, 2019.

The PCBA official said the Union Ministry has proposed to track the source of generation of waste to its final destination of treatment and disposal by introducing the concept of bar-code. The bar-code label will contain vital information such as name of the healthcare facility, place, PIN code and unique ID that the State’s Pollution Control Board (PCB) issues to the Health Care Facility (HCF).

Meanwhile, Fresh Air Waste Management Services Pvt. Ltd, the firm which has in collaboration with the PCBA for scientific disposal of biomedical waste in five districts including Kamrup (Metro), has already started sensitizing and training the hospitals as how to implement the bar-code system.

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