As dumping and burning of around 200 kg of bio-medical waste has led to environmental pollution at Kadamba Plateau, Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) has directed the Health Department to collect and dispose the waste at the earliest, failing which legal action will be initiated. Following complaints from locals, GSPCB recently inspected the Kadamba plateau, wherein around 200 kgs of bio-medical waste – outdated, contaminated and discarded medicines – were found dumped and burnt at the site in violation of the provisions of the Bio-Medical Waste Rules. It was observed that the dumped medicines were manufactured by Tamil Nadu based Sara Pharmaceuticals and supplied to the State government. “Hence, the Directorate of Health Services, is hereby directed to take immediate steps to ensure collection of bio-medical waste at the afore stated site and dispose-off the same in the incinerator of Goa Medical College (GMC),” GSPCB chairman Jose Manuel Noronha said in the order. Directing Health department to submit a compliance report within a fortnight, GSPCB said that failure to act will force the Board to initiate action under the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 read with Bio Medical Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 1998. Chimbel villagers had filed a complaint before GSPCB last month alleging that the Health department has disposed unwanted and expired medicines at Kadamba plateau without adopting proper measures. The locals sought to know whether the Board had permitted the department to dispose the medical waste.