Silver lining

From real-time monitoring to flying drones, Indian cities are innovating ways to handle COVID-19 biomedical waste

- DINESH RAJ BANDELA

ONE OF the cornerstones of the fight against the novel coronavirus, which will define how humans survive its aftermath and contain community spread, is the effective handling of biomedical waste—masks, gloves and other protective gears used by COVID-19 patients and health practitioners. Yet, biomedical waste management during the outbreak is daunting as individual households, along with hospitals and medical establishments, become the new primary source and the overall volume of waste increases substantially. In Gurugram, biomedical waste generated due to COVID-19 has increased from 500 kg a day in April to 3,000 kg a day in June, as per Biotic, the company responsible for collecting biomedical waste in the district. News reports estimate close to 500 per cent increase in biomedical waste generation due to the outbreak.