02-05-2025
Corporation to install compact STPs at Rajaji Nagar to reduce Amayizhanjan canal pollution
The Thiruvananthapuram Corporation is set to implement a project to install compact sewage treatment plants (STPs) at Rajaji Nagar in Thampanoor ward as part of measures to curb the flow of untreated sewage into the Amayizhanjan canal. The proposed plants will have a total capacity of 500 Kilo litres per day (KLD) and will be built at an estimated cost of ₹7.02 crore. It will be built as part of the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) scheme.
The civic body had last year formed a technical committee to identify a suitable location at Rajaji Nagar. The project is expected to be executed to follow the design, build, operate, and transfer (DBOT) model. In March this year, the Corporation inked an understanding with a sewerage network consultant to prepare a detailed project report and to carry out a survey of existing network conditions. Agreements have also been signed with separate agencies for installation of the STP and for plumbing work.
'The proposal is to install five compact sewage treatment plants in a decentralised manner. We have already received the design for the first plant of 150 KLD capacity. The plants will be located underground in the vacant space between houses and in the area where the material collection facility is currently located. It will probably be the first time that such an unconventional model will be tried out in Kerala. The plants are designed to handle both wastewater as well as faecal water. Due to its design features, the maintenance cost is also expected to be less,' said Corporation Secretary S. Jahamgeer.
Though an old sewerage line passes adjacent to Rajaji Nagar, it is currently running at full capacity, making it unsuitable to add newer connections to it. Reverse flow has also been detected in the line. The Corporation has taken several other measures including putting up barriers along the Amayizhanjan canal to reduce the waste outflow into the canal. Implementation of an STP project in the key area could considerably reduce the amount of waste water that reaches the canal.
