top of page

By:

Abhijit Mulye

21 August 2024 at 11:29:11 am

Shinde dilutes demand

Likely to be content with Deputy Mayor’s post in Mumbai Mumbai: In a decisive shift that redraws the power dynamics of Maharashtra’s urban politics, the standoff over the prestigious Mumbai Mayor’s post has ended with a strategic compromise. Following days of resort politics and intense backroom negotiations, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena has reportedly diluted its demand for the top job in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), settling instead for the Deputy Mayor’s post. This...

Shinde dilutes demand

Likely to be content with Deputy Mayor’s post in Mumbai Mumbai: In a decisive shift that redraws the power dynamics of Maharashtra’s urban politics, the standoff over the prestigious Mumbai Mayor’s post has ended with a strategic compromise. Following days of resort politics and intense backroom negotiations, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena has reportedly diluted its demand for the top job in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), settling instead for the Deputy Mayor’s post. This development, confirmed by high-ranking party insiders, follows the realization that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) effectively ceded its claims on the Kalyan-Dombivali Municipal Corporation (KDMC) to protect the alliance, facilitating a “Mumbai for BJP, Kalyan for Shinde” power-sharing formula. The compromise marks a complete role reversal between the BJP and the Shiv Sena. Both the political parties were in alliance with each other for over 25 years before 2017 civic polls. Back then the BJP used to get the post of Deputy Mayor while the Shiv Sena always enjoyed the mayor’s position. In 2017 a surging BJP (82 seats) had paused its aggression to support the undivided Shiv Sena (84 seats), preferring to be out of power in the Corporation to keep the saffron alliance intact. Today, the numbers dictate a different reality. In the recently concluded elections BJP emerged as the single largest party in Mumbai with 89 seats, while the Shinde faction secured 29. Although the Shinde faction acted as the “kingmaker”—pushing the alliance past the majority mark of 114—the sheer numerical gap made their claim to the mayor’s post untenable in the long run. KDMC Factor The catalyst for this truce lies 40 kilometers north of Mumbai in Kalyan-Dombivali, a region considered the impregnable fortress of Eknath Shinde and his son, MP Shrikant Shinde. While the BJP performed exceptionally well in KDMC, winning 50 seats compared to the Shinde faction’s 53, the lotter for the reservation of mayor’s post in KDMC turned the tables decisively in favor of Shiv Sena there. In the lottery, the KDMC mayor’ post went to be reserved for the Scheduled Tribe candidate. The BJP doesn’t have any such candidate among elected corporatros in KDMC. This cleared the way for Shiv Sena. Also, the Shiv Sena tied hands with the MNS in the corporation effectively weakening the Shiv Sena (UBT)’s alliance with them. Party insiders suggest that once it became clear the BJP would not pursue the KDMC Mayor’s chair—effectively acknowledging it as Shinde’s fiefdom—he agreed to scale down his demands in the capital. “We have practically no hope of installing a BJP Mayor in Kalyan-Dombivali without shattering the alliance locally,” a Mumbai BJP secretary admitted and added, “Letting the KDMC become Shinde’s home turf is the price for securing the Mumbai Mayor’s bungalow for a BJP corporator for the first time in history.” The formal elections for the Mayoral posts are scheduled for later this month. While the opposition Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA)—led by the Shiv Sena (UBT)—has vowed to field candidates, the arithmetic heavily favors the ruling alliance. For Eknath Shinde, accepting the Deputy Mayor’s post in Mumbai is a tactical retreat. It allows him to consolidate his power in the MMR belt (Thane and Kalyan) while remaining a partner in Mumbai’s governance. For the BJP, this is a crowning moment; after playing second fiddle in the BMC for decades, they are poised to finally install their own “First Citizen” of Mumbai.

Daily Record, Monthly Report: Bio-Waste Rules Enforced

Proper handling, segregation, and disposal of biomedical waste is now a strict facility-level responsibility.

The Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules, 2016, marked a significant shift in India’s approach to handling medical waste—simplifying classifications, expanding coverage, and aiming for greater compliance across the board. In my previous article, I outlined the evolution of these rules and the rationale behind the 2016 overhaul. Today, I will delve into their actual scope and applicability. From hospitals and clinics to health camps and school infirmaries, the rules apply to a wide array of institutions involved in the generation or handling of biomedical waste. Let’s take a closer look at who these rules apply to, what types of waste are excluded, and the detailed responsibilities of key players, especially the “occupier,” who plays a central role in ensuring that biomedical waste is managed safely and responsibly.


According to the notification, the Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules, 2016, apply to all individuals and entities involved in any aspect of handling biomedical waste. This includes those who generate, collect, receive, store, transport, treat, dispose of, or manage such waste in any form. The rules cover a wide range of establishments, such as:

· Hospitals, nursing homes, clinics, and dispensaries

· Veterinary institutions and animal houses

· Pathological laboratories and blood banks

· AYUSH hospitals and other clinical establishments

· Research and educational institutions

· Health camps, medical or surgical camps, and vaccination camps

· Blood donation camps and first aid rooms in schools

· Forensic laboratories and research labs


However, these rules shall not apply to radioactive wastes, hazardous chemicals, municipal solid wastes, lead-acid battery waste, hazardous wastes, electronic and electrical waste, hazardous microorganisms, genetically engineered microorganisms, etc. In these rules, the responsibilities of the concerned authorised persons, namely an “Occupier” and an “Operator,” have been specified.


(a) Occupier: The occupier is a person who has control over an institution generating biomedical waste, such as a hospital, nursing home, clinic, or laboratory, and has overall administrative control to ensure the proper handling, segregation, storage, and disposal of biomedical waste generated within their facility. They must take all necessary steps to prevent adverse effects on human health and the environment. The following are the major responsibilities of the occupier:


1. Provide a safe, ventilated, and secured location for storing segregated biomedical waste in coloured bags or containers within the premises, as specified in these rules.


2. Ensure that there is no secondary handling, pilferage of recyclables, or inadvertent scattering or spillage by animals, and that the biomedical waste from such place or premises shall be directly transported in the manner as

prescribed in these rules to the common treatment facility.


3. Ensure that the laboratory waste, microbiological waste, blood samples, and blood bags are pre-treated on-site through disinfection or sterilisation in the manner as prescribed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) or National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) guidelines before sending it to a common treatment facility for final disposal.


4. Ensure that the solid waste, other than biomedical waste, is disposed of following the provisions of the respective waste management rules made under the relevant laws and amended from time to time, and do not mix treated biomedical waste with municipal solid waste.


5. Provide on-site training regarding handling and segregation of waste to all its healthcare workers and others involved in handling of biomedical waste at the time of induction and thereafter at least once every year, and the details of training programmes conducted, number of personnel trained, and number of personnel who have not undergone any training shall be provided in the Annual Report.


6. Provide adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) to health care workers and others involved in handling biomedical waste.


7. Arrange for a health check-up at the time of induction and at least once a year for all its health care workers and others involved in handling biomedical waste, and maintain the records for the same.


8. Maintain and update the biomedical waste management register daily. Display the monthly record on the website as per the prescribed categories and colour codes in the biomedical waste management rules.


Stay tuned for the next part, where I’ll cover the remaining aspects. Have a wonderful weekend!

(The writer is an environmentalist.)

Comments

bottom of page