THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Unscientific disposal of unused or date-expired drugs is considered as one of the primary reasons for environmental pollution. Used antibiotics which are often disposed of carelessly seeps into the soil and water bodies, eventually affecting human life. In an effort to tackle the unsafe disposal of unused drugs, the State Drugs Control Department and All Kerala Chemists and Druggists’ Association (AKCDA) have jointly launched PROUD (Programme on Removal of Unused Drugs) in the district on a pilot basis. The authorities are also set to introduce the initiative across all districts in the state.
As part of the programme, about 100 safe drug collection boxes have been kept at selected places, including medical shops in the city, where people can drop expired or unused drugs from their houses.
According to State Drugs Controller K J John, a large number of elderly people in the state are dependent on drugs which account for a huge amount at the household level. These also include discontinued or expired drugs and medicines which are unused owing to a change in prescription. “Due to lack of biomedical waste disposal facilities, these drugs were simply being thrown on roadsides and into water bodies,” said John.
Under PROUD, about 21 tonnes of unused drugs from the city have been collected so far, segregated and handed over to Ramky Energy and Environment Ltd in Mangaluru for incineration.
“Following the success of the programme, the drugs control department had submitted a proposal to implement the project on the safe disposal of unused drugs across the state and received a sanction of `50 lakh from the state government and `2.75 crore from the Central government in the 2019-20 budget. However, the project came to a standstill due to the sudden outbreak of the pandemic,” said John.
“We have planned to associate with the Clean Kerala Company Limited, under the state government which has agreed to collect these drugs along with their routine waste collection programmes. The proposal has been approved by the law department and we are waiting for the approval from the state government after which it will be implemented in other districts as well,” he added.
Thomas Raju, secretary of All Kerala Chemists and Druggists’ Association, said, “Due to lack of a proper biomedical waste treatment plant in the state, we are transporting the collected drugs to another state for incineration which involves a huge expense. It comes to about `25 per kilo. With our limited resources and funds, we are unable to bear the responsibility.
We have also discussed the issue with the drugs control department and have come up with a decision to set up a biomedical waste treatment plant soon after a suitable land is obtained.”Meanwhile, the drugs control department and All Kerala Chemists and Druggists’ Association are planning to come up with more programmes including awareness workshops in the state to tackle the biomedical waste menace.
Incinerating collected medicines
Under the initiative, about 21 tonnes of unused drugs from the city have been collected so far, segregated and handed over to Ramky Energy and Environment Ltd in Mangaluru for incineration