If all goes well, the denizens of Haridwar would soon get some respite from the filth and mounts of solid waste bordering the city skyline.
The construction work of boundary wall at the earmarked place of Sarai village of the district where the waste solid treatment plant is to be commissioned, is over and the process of procurement of Plant machinery is underway.
Nagar Nigam officials are expecting the work to be complete by June end this year.
Following the NOC from pollution control board, construction work of the Solid waste management plant has started.
Waste amounts to 200 metric tonnes per day from 30 wards of Nagar Nigam
On an average 200 metric tonnes of solid waste is generated from 30 wards of Nagar Nigam on daily basis.
During fairs and fests like ongoing Ardh Kumbh Mela, due to increase in floating population, this quantity rises to nearly 300 metric tonnes.
The current waste management plant under commissioning has capacity of converting 100 metric tonnes of waste into manure per day.
Speaking to The Pioneer, MNA Vipra Trivedi said, “The boundary wall of wall of 85 hectares of land where the plant shall be commissioned is complete. Though the contractor company KRl has given us the deadline of the plant to be operational by 30 April but still taking extra margin, we hope that the work shall be complete by June end.”
Speaking about the capacity of the plant, Vipra said, “The waste management Plant has capacity of processing 100 metric tonnes. If 200 metric tonnes is collected per day nearly 100 tonnes shall be segregated into plastic and non-biodegradable waste so the Plant shall be optimally used for the purpose of conversion to manure. Out of the total cost of 16.75 crores nearly 7 crores was spent on collection and transport facility and remaining 9 crores on plant and machinery.”
Notably there was lot of hassles in the commencement of this project. On October 22 in the year 2012, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between KRl waste management company and Nagar Nigam under JnNURM scheme by the virtue of which the solid waste management plant was to be constructed. Also the task of collection of waste was given to the same company.
The project cost was estimated to be 16.75 crores by the central Government. Nagar Nigam purchased land in Village Sarai and the first installment of 2 crores was released in 2012, the second installment of the same amount in 2013 and third installment of 1 crore was released to the company with which the necessary equipments for collection of waste were purchased. For the plant commissioning 10 crores 90 lakhs was to be sanctioned, but after the Modi government in 2015 the JNNURM scheme was scrapped.
This resulted in delay of the project. Following this the National Green Tribunal asked the state government to arrange funds on its own level. In November 2015 2 crores budget was decided by state government and the only hitch was release of consent by the Pollution control Board which was released this week.