KGMU Slapped with Rs 10 lakh Penalty for Violating Medical Waste Disposal Norms

New Delhi: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has slapped an interim penalty of Rs 10 lakh on Lucknow-based King George's Medical University (KGMU) for failing to ensure proper disposal of medical waste and other environmental norms.

A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel passed the order after perusing a report submitted by the UP Solid Waste Management Monitoring Committee.

"The UPPCB may exercise of powers inter-alia under Rule 16 of the SWM Rules, 2016, the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act,1974 and the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 and apart from other steps, determine and recover the amount of damage after following due procedure," it said.

"Pending such consideration, we direct King George Medical University to deposit interim compensation of Rs 10 lakhs with the UPPCB," the tribunal said.

The NGT said the UPPCB may spend the amount for the restoration of the environment and to help the victims of diseases, wherever necessary, and also conduct an appropriate health impact study.

The bench, also comprising justices S P Wangdi and K Ramakrishnan, directed the UPPCB to furnish an action taken the report to the tribunal within one month by email.

The waste management monitoring committee had recommended that KGMU is saddled with the compensatory cost of Rs 10 lakh which may be deposited in Ayushman Yojana fund, ear-marked for BPL citizens to provide them with free treatment.

The committee had also said that the KGMU be directed to strictly comply with the "BMW Rules-2016 and the biomedical wastes categories, their segregation, collection, treatment, processing and disposal options are done as per Schedule I of the BMW Rules 2016 and accordingly take appropriate actions within a period of three months".

The tribunal was hearing a petition seeking compliance of the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016.