Centre to soon sanction sewage treatment units along Ganga tributaries

Around 75% of the new common effluent treatment plant's cost would be borne by the Clean Ganga Mission

The government is expected to sanction sewage treatment plants (STPs) along some tributaries of the Ganga — Hindon, Ramganga, Gomti and Kali (East) — by the end of this month. Also, a 20 million litres a day (MLD) common effluent treatment plant (CETP) in Kanpur.

"All the STPs in the main rivers under the Namami Gange Mission have already been sanctioned. Now, STPs along the polluted tributaries, also responsible for much of the industrial waste that flows into the river, are being sanctioned," said U P Singh, secretary, water resources.

Singh took charge as secretary in the ministry earlier this month; till then, he was director-general of the National Mission for Clean Ganga.

He said the Kali and Ramganga rivers were dotted with industrial units making leather, pulp & paper and sugar. In all, 1,109 'Gross Polluting Industries' have been identified so far, of which around 300 have been closed. The majority of these industries are leather manufacturers in and around Kanpur.

On the new CETP, Singh said Kanpur has an old one with a capacity of only nine MLD. By the estimate, around 20 MLD of effluents is generated from the city. So, 11 MLD is discharged into the Ganga or untreated.

Around 75 per cent of the new CETP's cost would be borne by the Clean Ganga Mission, while the rest will come from industry associations. Operation and maintenance would be by the tanners' body, Singh said. The plant is expected to be operational in two to three years; the old one would be scrapped.

He added final approval for linking of the Ken-Betwa rivers is expected in a few weeks.