R.G. Kar case: CBI seeks report from Bengal govt on biomedical waste

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is conducting a probe into the financial irregularities at state-run R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata, has sought a report from the West Bengal health department on the general practices adopted in case of disposal of biomedical waste in different medical colleges and hospitals in the state.

The development is significant amid allegations that a major part of the alleged financial scam at R.G. Kar pertained to the smuggling of biomedical waste.

Sources said that among the queries made by the central agency to the state health department, the first is the time when the central policies regarding biomedical waste were implemented in the state.

The second was whether the state health department had been monitoring the medical colleges and hospitals for sticking to the laid down norms on the disposal of biomedical waste.

Sources said the CBI officials have traced severe irregularities in the disposal of biomedical waste.

As per rules, the biomedical waste of any hospital are supposed to be disposed of following a particular procedure to eliminate the chances of their reuse. However, in the case of R.G. Kar, a major part of the biological wastes having the potential of reuse like saline bottles, injection syringes and needles, among others, were sold in the market instead of being disposed of.

Each hospital is also supposed to maintain a record of the amount of biomedical waste being disposed of by its authorities over a certain period. Often it has been noticed that in the case of R.G. Kar the quantum of the biomedical waste disposed of by its authorities during a certain period is much less than what was reported by other state-run medical colleges and hospitals of similar size during the same period.

Sources added that the investigating officials have also been able to track two Bangladesh-based individuals frequenting Kolkata and developing close contacts with Sandip Ghosh, the former and controversial principal of R.G. Kar against whom CBI is conducting two parallel investigations, the first being on the ghastly rape-murder of a junior doctor within the hospital premises last month and the second is on the financial irregularities case.

These two Bangladeshi nationals were mainly in the business of procuring medical equipment and selling them to different hospitals in Bangladesh.