91pc operate without environment clearance

At least 91 percent of private hospitals and clinics in Savar are running without clearance from the Department of Environment.

Only 10 of the total 115 private hospitals and clinics in the upazila have necessary environmental clearance to run their operations, confirmed DoE sources.

Also, eight of the hospitals and clinics in the upazila are running without approval from Directorate General of Health Services, as per health department.

Since environmental clearance was not mandatory for obtaining a licence from DGHS earlier, most health centres in Savar have long been running without it. They merely had to submit a copy of their respective applications to the DoE seeking clearance to get the licence.

However, the DGHS, at a meeting on March 16 last year, decided that it would neither grant nor renew licences to any private hospital, clinic, diagnostic centre, or blood transfusion centre without an environmental clearance.

Environmental experts have welcomed the move.

Mashura Shammi, professor at Department of Environmental Sciences of Jahangirnagar University, said, "Environmental clearance involves several factors that are largely ignored in Bangladesh. Every day, a lot of waste is generated from the hospitals, but no environmental impact assessment for it has been done."

"Only a small portion of this huge amount of biomedical, liquid, and hazardous medical waste generated daily is being treated, while the bulk of it is disposed of completely untreated," she added.

Saemul Huda, upazila health and family planning officer in Savar, said, "Earlier, we used to scrutinise and recommend granting licences only if the hospitals or clinics submitted copies of their applications for environmental clearance along with other necessary documents. From now on, however, it will not be done without updated environmental clearance."

Contacted, Zahirul Islam Talukdar, deputy director of DoE in Dhaka district, said, "We issue environmental clearance only if the hospitals or clinics fully comply with the conditions required to obtain it. They would get a licence only after due vetting from the DoE."

Meanwhile, owners of private hospitals and clinics in the upazila expressed concern that they would face a barrage of complications in obtaining and renewing their license due to this decision.

Contacted, Wakilur Rahman, owner of Lab Zone Hospital in Savar and also vice-president of Savar's Private Hospital Owners' Association, said obtaining environmental clearance is the most difficult among the necessary licences and approvals.

"However, since it has been made mandatory, I think it will be beneficial for us if the DoE makes it easier for hospitals to get clearances. Otherwise, many hospitals and clinics may struggle to obtain or renew a licence," he added.