The southern bench of the National Green Tribunal has called on the Commissioner of Tambaram City Municipal Corporation to explain how receipts for ₹5 lakh each were issued for fines related to two private hospitals, despite neither hospital having made the payments, after biomedical waste was found dumped along Pallavaram Periya Eri.

The bench, comprising Justice Pushpa Sathyanarayana and expert member Satyagopal Korlapati, was hearing a suo motu case regarding the dumping of five tonnes of biomedical waste along the Pallavaram Periya Eri lake bund on September 24, 2024. 

The Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) counsel informed the bench that after inspecting the site, the TNPCB issued show-cause notices to the two hospitals the following day, based on letterheads from GEM Hospitals and MIOT Hospitals found with the biomedical waste, which was mixed with other solid waste.

When the matter was last heard in October 2024, the Tambaram Municipal Corporation reported that the hospitals had been fined ₹5 lakh for illegally dumping waste, including biomedical waste, in open spaces. The Corporation also presented receipts as evidence of the payment. However, during the hearing on December 18, 2024, both hospitals denied making any payment.

On Tuesday, the Corporation’s sanitation officer, who attended the hearing, confirmed that no payment had been received. He explained that he had issued a “spot penalty” after visiting the hospitals, but could not clarify how he had signed the receipts before the money was received. The standing counsel for the Corporation suggested that there had been a “compromise” between the hospitals’ representatives and the police.

The hospitals’ counsels denied the allegations, contending that the presence of their letterheads on the waste did not necessarily indicate ownership of it. They also noted that both hospitals partner with GJ Multiclave for biomedical waste disposal. The bench has impleaded GJ Multiclave in the case, directed the Corporation Commissioner to appear via videoconference, and scheduled the next hearing for April 21.