GHMC to install medicine waste collection boxes at Hyderabad medical shops

The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) is preparing to launch a pilot medicine waste collection drive in Hyderabad starting in July 2026. The civic body will install dedicated collection boxes at select medical shops to encourage the safe disposal of expired and unused medicines.

The initiative aims to address a growing civic concern regarding how households handle leftover pharmaceutical products. Currently, many residents end up with unused medicines after recovering from illnesses, or store over-the-counter tablets and capsules that eventually pass their expiry dates.

Without a dedicated disposal system, patients frequently discard these pharmaceutical products in standard household dustbins or flush them down toilets. The waste includes tablets, capsules, syrups, tonics, pills, liquids, skin creams, ointments, and cosmetic products.

A senior GHMC official, who is also handling the civic body's e-waste drive, explained that while hospitals follow established safety procedures by using red biohazard bags and bins, individual patients have lacked a dedicated mechanism to safely discard their unused medicines.

The official warned that storing expired or unused medicines at home poses a high health risk, particularly to children who might swallow or chew them in the absence of elders. Additionally, disposing of these products in regular trash or sewage systems threatens public health and damages the environment by contaminating local water sources.

Under the upcoming pilot project, the GHMC will place separate medicine waste boxes in reputed medical shops. Citizens can deposit any unused or expired medicines in these boxes.

Once collected, the GHMC will transport the medicine waste to identified specialized units for recycling and safe disposal. This campaign follows other recent waste collection initiatives by the municipal corporation, including an e-waste drive and a sacred waste material drive.