New Delhi , April 9: The government mounted a full-scale operation to neutralise the highly toxic Cobalt-60 found emitting radiation in a scrap yard in Mayapuri by calling in radiation experts from Narora Atomic Power Station and the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (Barc) and a team from the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).
Cobalt-60, used as a radiation source in the treatment of cancer, can theoretically also be used to produce a “dirty bomb” with high radioactive fallout. But in Mayapuri the Cobalt-60 was part of medical instruments which, through gross negligence, had found their way to India’s biggest scrapyard.
B. Bhattacharjee, former director of Barc and heading the nuclear disaster mitigation wing of the NDMA, were able to locate and neutralise eight highly toxic instruments in this one scrapyard.
Dr Bhattacharjee said, “These radioactive isotopes emit radiation which can cause severe burns. Pankaj Jain, the scrap dealer in whose shop these instruments were found, has been the worst victim and has been hospitalised for the last 15 days before being shifted to Deen Dayal Hospital.”
The key question before the nuclear experts is how this toxic waste found its way to Mayapuri. “It is used in fabrication work where radiography is required and also in treatment of cancers,” said Dr Bhattacharjee.
Experts are also concerned about the extent of gamma rays that have been emitted from these instruments and how much has
been absorbed both by Jain and the five workers in his shop. “This is the key question since the radioactive field of Cobalt-60 is very high. All of them will have to be kept under observation for some time,” he said.
The recycling of medical waste has been a source of consternation for environmentalists. At present, three contractors in Delhi have been certified by the government to handle the bio-medical and toxic waste coming out of our hospitals. “But we have to first establish from where this waste has come,” said Ms Sunita Narain, director, Centre for Science and Environment.
Former Intelligence Bureau member K.M. Singh, also with the NDMA, claimed, “These radioactive signals were coming from three other shops in the same neighbourhood. We have sanitised the area but we need to pinpoint from where this radioactive material has been sourced.”
Rashme Sehgal