ISLAMABAD: Though it is the responsibility of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) to ensure municipal services in the city, for over a year the collection of garbage from the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) has become a bone of contention between the civic agency and the hospital administration.

However, the Senate standing committee on cabinet secretariat has finally instructed the CDA to ensure the collection of garbage from Pims.

Pims’ deputy director (non-medical) Mohammad Sadaqat Awan informed the standing committee the other day that Pims had a proper mechanism to collect infectious waste.

However, thousands of people visit the hospital daily and throw cans, packets of juices and other items on the premises. He said the hospital’s sanitary staff collected the garbage and dumped it in a corner of the premises.

Senate body informed that since 2013 when CDA outsourced garbage disposal, the private firm has not been collecting waste from hospital

“For about 28 years, the CDA used to pick the garbage from there but in December 2013 it contracted out the garbage collection to a private company. The staff of the company refused to take away the garbage from the hospital,” he said.

Mr Awan said the sanitary staff was of the view that the garbage should be placed on the roadside from where they would carry it away whenever they find it convenient.

“Hundreds of kilogrammes of garbage are collected every day and if it is thrown on the roadside it will become a big environmental and health issue. As result, the Pims management is not in favour of placing the garbage on the roadside,” he said.

Mohammad Talha Mehmood, the chairman of the Senate committee, said he had also heard that waste was burnt in front of houses due to which the residents suffered. The CDA should have a proper arrangement to resolve the issue, he said.

CDA Chairman Maroof Afzal initially said hospitals managed their waste themselves and Pims should make its own arrangement too. However, when the committee members insisted that the garbage collection was the responsibility of the CDA, the chairman said he would look into the matter.

Mr Talha directed the CDA to place five garbage containers at the garbage collection area of the hospital and ensure its timely collection.

Sadaqat Awan told Dawn that there was a primary school near the garbage dumping area.

“Though nowadays the school is closed for summer vacations, due to the garbage the students have been suffering for over a year,” he said.

“Since December 2013, letters have been sent to the CDA and I have also met the officers concerned, including the CDA chairman, but the issue could not be resolved,” he said.

He said there were also residential areas near the garbage box so the CDA should ensure the removal of the garbage.

He expressed the hope that after the direction of the Senate standing committee, the issue would be resolved.

Published in Dawn, July 3rd, 2015

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