The Delhi High Court today issued notice on a petition against establishment of Common Bio-Medical Waste Treatment Facilities in the national capacity. The Petition has been filed by International Human Rights Council (IHRC) through SUO team comprising of Advocates Mr. Suren Uppal, Ms. Sneha Baul and Ms. Samiksha Gupta.
"Functioning of CBMWTF is a heavy duty facility which needs to strictly comply with environment protection norms for safeguarding the public health and climate change. Hence, the said activity cannot be delegated to a private entity, when the statutory rules does not envisage the same.", the plea states at the very outset.
According to the Petitioner, tender document is riddled with illegality and in its very nature arbitrary and the setting up of such Common Bio- Medical Waste Treatment Facilities in NCT of Delhi is in grave contravention to the Bio-Medical Waste Management, Rules, 2016, guidelines issued by Central Pollution Control Board, and Government Procurement norms.
"Rule 17 of Bio-Medical Waste Management, Rules, 2016 . Site for common bio-medical waste treatment and disposal facility.-(1) Without prejudice to rule 5 of these rules, the department in the business allocation of land assignment shall be responsible for providing suitable site for setting up of common biomedical waste treatment and disposal facility in the State Government or Union territory Administration."
"Schedule 3-
Point 7- Municipalities or Corporations, Urban Local Bodies and Gram Panchayats- (i) Provide or allocate suitable land for development of common bio-medical waste treatment facilities in their respective jurisdictions as per the guidelines of 27 Central Pollution Control Board."
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. Hence, the said activity cannot be delegated to a private entity, when the statutory rules does not envisage the same.
The PIL further states that if the work of arranging land is entrusted with the Bidder himself, the same would lead to the possibilities of uncertainty in terms of land requirement, plot size, coverage area, land being 500 meters from residential and sensitive areas, etc. since no ascertainment with respect to the above-mentioned is done at the stage of EOI. The whole exercise would turn out to be futile and on the contrary prove to be time consuming if the task of land procurement is done by the Bidder himself.
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