Development Commissioner Asit Tripathy has focused on sustainable sanitation management in the State and urged for building up a ‘Swachha Odisha Sustha Odisha’.
A consultative meeting was held under the chairmanship of Tripathy for taking up action towards implementation of the Faecal Sludge and Septage Management Regulations, 2018 in the State.
Principal Secretary Housing and Urban Development G Mathivathnan at the outset impressed upon the officials on various steps undertaken by the Housing and Urban Development Department (DoHUD) towards reducing contamination of water bodies.
The DoHUD currently provides septage treatment facilities to 48 per cent of urban population through the seven septage treatment plants at Bhubaneswar, Baripada, Brahmapur, Dhenkanal, Puri, Rourkela and Sambalpur, he said.
The DoHUD plans are to establish more 26 septage treatment plants within this year which will cater to 70 per cent of the urban population.
The Principal Secretary DoHUD said these initiatives are in response to a declaration made by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik to provide septage treatment facilities across all 114 ULBs made during the national workshop on faecal sludge and septage management held at Bhubaneswar on October 26 and 27 last year.
Principal Secretary Commerce and Transport G Srinivas assured on the cancellation of registration of the cesspool vehicles if plying without proper registration and found indulged in contravention to provisions envisaged in the FSSM Regulations 2018.
Director, Municipal Administration, Sangramjit Nayak reiterated on the need for enforcement of the provisions of the regulations to restrict illegal/ indiscriminate disposal of faecal waste and septage.
Additional Commissioner Technical CR Ray and RTO-I Bhubaneswar Pradeep Kumar Mohanty were also present to provide information on the cesspool vehicles plying in the city of Bhubaneswar.
Commissioner of Police, Bhubaneswar-Cuttack, Satyajit Mohanty, DCP Bhubaneswar Anup Kumar Sahoo and DCP Cuttack Akhileswar Singh also attended the meeting.
Commissioner, Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation, Prem Chandra Chaudhary, and Commissioner, Cuttack Municipal Corporation Ananya Das participated in the meeting.
It was decided that BMC and CMC shall function as model cities towards management of faecal sludge and the Commissioners shall take steps to enforce the regulations strictly in their respective administrative areas.
A joint squad will be formed with municipal enforcement team, police administration and RTO for enforcement of FSSM Regulations 2018.
All private cesspool vehicles are to register with their respective urban local bodies and will have GPS. These vehicles will have registration stickers with the ULB, clearly marked on both sides of the tank.