Top

Thiruvananthapuram: Hospital, hotels guilty of waste

Dumped in truckloads at Paravankunnu.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: City Corporation officials will slap a fine on a hospital and a few restaurants in the city after truck loads of their waste were found dumped at a vacant property at Paravankunnu near Ambalathara on Sunday. SP Fort Hospital, Thakkaram hotel, Trivandrum hotel, Sabu Bakery, Papa restaurant, Vigneshwara restaurant and SP supermarket were among those accused off dumping waste, said mnayor V.K. Prasant. Local residents had raised a protest and a team under mayor had visited the spot. They recovered bills and documents that will serve as evidence against these organisations.

According to the versions that were given by the firms to the Corporation, they had entrusted a private contractor to take away the waste. This was being dumped on the reclaimed wetland close to the paddy field, they claimed.
While local residents have been crying foul over the hospital waste, it was only on Sunday, that they could identify the source. “Blood stained cotton, hospital waste, chicken and food residue were causing health issues to people around. We could not catch the contractor red-handed but we hope the Corporation will take legal action against him,” said Hari Krishnan, a local resident.

The Corporation had buried the waste for the time being and the cost incurred along with fine will be levied on these organisations. The amount will be fixed on Monday, officials said. “They had the option to hand over the waste to a Corporation accredited agency at the cost of Rs 5 per kilogram. Or else they could install a facility to process waste on their own. However, in order to save money they gave it to an unreliable contractor,” said a senior Corporation health official.

The city Corporation has been battling the menace of private waste contractors. They had implemented a partially successful log book system to monitor waste that goes out of chicken stalls. However, a similar system was yet to be implemented for marriage halls, hospitals and major restaurants.

( Source : Deccan Chronicle. )
Next Story