PIL filed in Delhi HC opposing govt's tender for Common Bio-Medical Waste Treatment Plant

A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been filed in the Delhi High Court challenging the tender document issued by the Delhi Government through the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) for the purpose of establishing and able to operate two Common Bio-Medical Waste Treatment Facilities (CBWFTFs) in Delhi's National Capital Territory (NCT) districts of East, North East, and Shahdara, as well as West, Southwest, and Central.

A bench comprising of Justice DN Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh issued notice to respondents in the case, including the Union of India and the Delhi Government, on Thursday, 7 October, and scheduled the matter for a hearing on November 30, 2021.

The terms and conditions of the previously stated tender document were riddled with illegality and were arbitrary in nature, according to the petition filed by the International Human Rights Council, claiming to be a charitable trust, and the establishment of such Common Bio-Medical Waste Treatment Facilities in the NCT of Delhi was in serious violation of the Bio-Medical Waste Management, Rules, 2016, guidelines issued by the Central Pollution Control Board.

According to the petition, a CBWTF is a facility where biomedical waste generated by health care facilities is treated in order to decrease the negative impact that this material may have on human health and the environment.

Finally, the treated recyclable garbage can be disposed of in a secure landfill or recycled. The Union of India issued the Biomedical Waste Management Rules, 2016, which were notified on March 28, 2016, with the goal of ensuring environmentally sound disposal of biomedical wastes in a far more effective manner, according to the plea.

Common Bio-Medical Waste Treatment Facilities in Delhi

The plea also stated that the tender seeking proposals from operators for the establishment of Common Bio-Medical Waste Treatment Facilities were clearly in violation because the rules state unequivocally that land for the development of Bio-Medical Waste Treatment Facilities must be provided by the State Department in the business allocation of land assignment, i.e. the Municipality.

In this case, however, the tender stipulates that the land must be provided by the operators submitting bids. Despite the fact that, according to the plea, bidders are required to produce proof that they own the land when submitting tenders.

"The tender is clearly in contravention to the Bio-Medical Waste Management and Handling Rules, 2016, which are statutory rules. The very purpose of Rule 17 of Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules, 2016 which provides that the land has to be mandatorily provided by the State Government, is to ensure that the land is strictly in compliance with the Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules, pollution norms and strictly comply with all the environmental clearances, as the functioning of CBMWTF is a heavy-duty facility which needs to strictly comply with environment protection norms for safeguarding the climate change," said the plea.

On the one hand, the Centre stated that a Bio-Medical Waste Treatment Facility must be built in the industrial region, while on the other hand, according to the plea, industrial workers typically live in makeshift arrangements near such industrial sites. Similarly, a 500-meter buffer zone must be maintained at all times between the facility and any sensitive/residential area, the plea stressed. As a result, maintaining a balance necessitates that the property be provided by the state to assure compliance with all such rules, it noted.

(with inputs from ANI)

Image: ANI/RepresentativeImage