Hospitals go green in haste

Hospitals go green in haste

Nine government hospitals in Bangalore have, in a hurry, set up temporary effluent plants to avoid closure even as the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board is set to decide on the issue before Thursday, Sunitha Rao R reports

Sunitha Rao R



Government hospitals in the city are setting up temporary effluent treatment plants (ETPs) to avoid action by the state pollution control board. The hospitals, which are facing the threat of closure, are KC General hospital, Jayanagar General hospital, Ghousia, SDS TB Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases, Bowring and Lady Curzon hospital, Minto eye hospital, Vanivilas, and Kidwai hospital.
Lok Adalat had issued guidelines to the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) to take a decision on nine government hospitals which were violating the Hazards and Health Care Management Rules of 1998 by not setting up permanent or prescribed effluent treatment plants (ETPs).
Dr Vishwaradhya, medical superintend of KC general hospital said, "We've already got four temporary treatment plants working in the blood bank, operation theatre, and lab. This is approved by the state pollution control board."
Bowring hospital too has set up temporary treatment plants in their blood bank, pathology department, micro biology and biochemistry labs. Documents to float a tender for the construction of permanent effluent treatment plant have been sent to Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute.
Dr Ramesh, joint director of medical, under whose limits the Jayanagar, Ghousia and KC General hospital come, said "All the three hospital have come up with temporary effluent treatment plants, which is approved by the pollution control board."
Dr Usha Vasankar, director, department of health and family welfare department, said "We'll have to wait for the board's verdict."
Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases has got bed strength with 60% occupancy.
"We dispose the solid waste through private agencies and the liquid waste generated from labs is treated before it is sent out of the hospital. To build the ETP, it costs not less than Rs 50 lakhs to Rs60 lakhs. The copy of the tender has been submitted to the department of medical education," said Dr Shashidhar Buggy, director of the institute.
"The liquid waste generated from general wards is the same as the one generated from any household. Why should that water be treated as effluent? The pollution control board's water act says that the water, which is infected, needs to be treated. The patients, whom we see in general wards, can also be seen in households. Hence, there should be exemption for liquid waste generated from general wards," Dr Buggy said.
Hiremutt, executive engineer of Karnataka Health System's development and reform project, said the relevant papers to set up ETPs in hospitals, which come under the health and family welfare department, have already been sent to the World Bank, which has shown interest in helping this project.
Sources said although the bank had shown its interest to implement ETPs in hospitals, they did not favour e-tendering of the construction works.