Glossary
Bio-medical waste colour codes: yellow, red, white, blue What Schedule I of the BMW Rules 2016 puts in each bag, and what a small clinic actually generates.
The four bins at the back of every clinic, read straight from Schedule I of the rules: which waste goes where, what the bag has to be made of, and the two other rules that attach to the bins.
Published · Last reviewed · 3 min read
- Rule 8(2) of the BMW Rules 2016 says waste "shall be segregated into containers or bags at the point of generation in accordance with Schedule I". The colours are yellow, red, white (translucent) and blue.
- Yellow and red bags must be non-chlorinated plastic; white is a puncture-proof, leak-proof, tamper-proof container for sharps; blue is a cardboard box with blue marking for glass.
- The colour coding has not changed in the 2018, 2019 or 2026 amendments. The 2026 amendment (G.S.R. 293(E), 17 April 2026) only adds Ayush departments to rules 11 and 12.
Bio-medical waste colour coding is the four-colour segregation scheme in Schedule I of the Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules, 2016 (G.S.R. 343(E), 28 March 2016): yellow, red, white (translucent) and blue bags or containers, each tied to a type of waste and a treatment route. Rule 8(2) says bio-medical waste "shall be segregated into containers or bags at the point of generation in accordance with Schedule I prior to its storage, transportation, treatment and disposal". Point of generation means the dressing table and the injection tray, not the back door.
What goes in each colour?
| Colour | Bag or container | Waste | Treatment route in the Schedule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow | Yellow coloured non-chlorinated plastic bags or containers | Human anatomical waste; soiled waste ("dressings, plaster casts, cotton swabs and bags containing residual or discarded blood"); expired or discarded medicines; chemical waste; discarded linen contaminated with blood or body fluid; microbiology and lab waste | Incineration or plasma pyrolysis or deep burial (deep burial only in rural or remote areas with no CBWTF access) |
| Red | Red coloured non-chlorinated plastic bags or containers | "Contaminated Waste (Recyclable)": tubing, bottles, IV tubes and sets, catheters, urine bags, "syringes (without needles and fixed needle syringes) and vaccutainers with their needles cut" and gloves | Autoclaving or microwaving followed by shredding; sent to authorised recyclers. "Plastic waste should not be sent to landfill sites." |
| White (translucent) | Puncture proof, leak proof, tamper proof containers | Waste sharps including metals: "Needles, syringes with fixed needles, needles from needle tip cutter or burner, scalpels, blades, or any other contaminated sharp object" | Autoclaving or dry heat sterilisation followed by shredding or encapsulation |
| Blue | Cardboard boxes with blue coloured marking | Glassware: "Broken or discarded and contaminated glass including medicine vials and ampoules" (except cytotoxic); metallic body implants | Disinfection or autoclaving, then recycling |
Two details catch clinics out. A syringe is red waste only once the needle is off; the needle, or a syringe with a fixed needle, is white. And a broken ampoule is blue, not yellow, unless it held a cytotoxic drug.
What else does the rule attach to the bins?
- Labels: rule 8(3) says the bags and containers "shall be labeled as specified in Schedule IV" (the biohazard and cytotoxic symbols with the facility's details).
- Storage: rule 4(b) requires "a safe, ventilated and secured location for storage of segregated biomedical waste in colored bags or containers" inside the premises, and rule 8(7) says untreated human anatomical, soiled and biotechnology waste "shall not be stored beyond a period of forty-eight hours".
- Register: rule 4(n) asks the occupier to "maintain and update on day to day basis the bio-medical waste management register" by category and colour.
What does a small OPD actually generate?
A single-doctor clinic that gives injections and does dressings fills four small containers, not four drums. Cotton and gauze from a dressing go in yellow. The syringe barrel, after the needle is cut off, and the gloves go in red. The needle goes in the white sharps box. The empty ampoule goes in the blue box. Expired stock from the drug cupboard goes in yellow. Wrappers and office paper are ordinary municipal waste. The clinic's own obligations, the Form II authorisation and the annual return are in our post on the BMW Rules for a small clinic; the facility that collects the bags is explained under CBWTF.
Questions
Is there a black or green bin for bio-medical waste?
Not in Schedule I of the BMW Rules 2016. The Schedule names four categories: yellow, red, white (translucent) and blue. Other colours are municipal solid waste bins under separate rules and must not hold bio-medical waste.
Did the 2026 amendment change the colour codes?
No. The Bio-Medical Waste Management (Amendment) Rules, 2026 (G.S.R. 293(E), 17 April 2026) only insert Ayush departments into rules 11 and 12. Schedule I is untouched.
Sources
- Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules, 2016, G.S.R. 343(E), 28 March 2016: rules 2, 4, 5, 7, 8 and Schedule I (text read from a mirror copy at nswai.org because cpcb.nic.in did not resolve on 30 October 2026) (accessed 30 Oct 2026)
- MoEFCC, Bio-Medical Waste Management (Amendment) Rules, 2026, G.S.R. 293(E), 17 April 2026, Gazette of India Extraordinary No. 269, 20 April 2026 (accessed 30 Oct 2026)
This is operational guidance for clinics, not legal or tax advice. Confirm with your state authority, council or CA.
Drafted with AI assistance; every fact checked against the sources listed; reviewed by the Vitels team.