NGT questions Kerala's biomedical waste capacity claims amid cross-border dumping
The NGT's Southern Bench has flagged gaps in the KSPCB's report on biomedical waste treatment capacity and sought details on facilities lacking proper waste management.
The National Green Tribunal has found shortcomings in a report submitted by the Kerala State Pollution Control Board, which maintained that the State has sufficient facilities to process biomedical waste generated by healthcare institutions across its districts.
The Southern Bench of the tribunal asked authorities to explain why biomedical waste from Keralam was being dumped in neighbouring States if no shortfall in treatment capacity exists. The Bench, comprising Judicial Member Pushpa Sathyanarayana and Expert Member Prashant Gargava, made the observations in an order dated September 21, 2026.
The proceedings stem from the illegal dumping of biomedical and mixed solid waste from Keralam at multiple locations in Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu in December 2024.
According to data placed before the tribunal, the State generated about 73.08 tonnes of biomedical waste per day in 2025. Two common biomedical waste treatment and disposal facilities are currently operational — Indian Medical Association Goes Eco-friendly (IMAGE) in Palakkad and Kerala Enviro Infrastructure Ltd. (KEIL) at Ambalamugal in Ernakulam. Together they have an installed treatment capacity of about 71.8 tonnes per day, and around 72.4 tonnes per day was treated through these common facilities in 2025. As many as 24,390 healthcare facilities use their services.
The Bench observed that this data would suggest the State has capacity proportionate to the waste it generates, and noted that the question of why waste is still being sent to border States remains unaddressed.
Citing the board's report, the tribunal also pointed out that 642 applications from healthcare facilities seeking authorisation under the Biomedical Waste Management Rules, 2016, are pending, while 73 applications were returned for further clarification. It is not known how waste generated by these facilities is being treated or disposed of, the Bench said.
Board officials said they have requested an updated report from the Health department on the total number of healthcare facilities operating in the State. The information, once received, will be compiled to properly assess treatment capacity and the availability of the required facilities for biomedical waste management. The tribunal has directed the board to submit a district-wise list of healthcare facilities found lacking in waste management.