The Bio-medical Waste Management Rules 2016 has been a long-awaited updated version of the 1998 rules; the mushrooming of health care industry within the milieu of the country coinciding with the drift towards greater environmental consciousness and greater accountability. The new rules bring in several significant changes, primarily at Classification of Bio-Medical Waste The World Health Organization (WHO) has classified medical waste into eight categories: 1. General Waste 2. Pathological 3. Radioactive 4. Chemical 5. Infectious to potentially infectious waste 6. Sharps 7. Pharmaceuticals 8. Pressurized containers 13-10-2018 5 SUNIL KUMAR. P ST.JOHN'S MEDICAL COLLEGE , BANGALORE The Biomedical Waste Management Rules, 2016, define biomedical waste as "any waste generated during the diagnosis, treatment, or immunisation of humans or animals, or related research activities, or in the manufacture or testing of biological products in health camps." The environmentally sound disposal of Biomedical Waste through segregation, collection, and treatment reduces the negative Biomedical Waste Management Rules, 2016 and BMWM (Amendment) Rules 20182 4a. Introduction: Under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, Biomedical waste Management Rules, 2016 came into force from 28thMarch 2016 in superseding of the earlier Biomedical Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 1998. In order to improve, the collection, segregation, processing, treatment and disposal of biomedical wastes in an environmentally sound manner, the Central Government has notified the new Bio-medical Waste Management Rule on28thMarch, 2016 superseding the 1998 rules. 16/03/2018 Ministry of Environment; Underlining the effort to protect the environment and human health from infectious bio-medical waste, Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Dr. Harsh Vardhan has said that Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules, 2016 Rules have been amended to improve compliance and strengthen the implementation of environmentally sound management of Along with the changes in the Rules, amendments have also been made to Schedule I, II and III and the format for submission of the annual report information on bio-medical waste management has been inserted as Form IVA. The Amendment Rules have come into force from March 16, 2018. [G.S.R. 234 (E)]