The capital city's open 'sewage line'

PANAJI: In 2005, a new, 12.5-million-litres-per-day sewerage treatment plant (STP) at Tonca raised hopes for a dying St Inez creek. Almost a decade later, the creek continues to be stifled by sewage from households along its route and, as citizens allege, from the plant itself.

Till almost a decade ago, the old 4.5mld plant of the late 1960s had to cough out raw sewage into the 3.6km-water body, as the plant's capacity had proved inadequate to cope with the capital city's needs.

Today, a sizeable output from households unable to link to the central sewerage line and hutments without privy facilities are contributing significantly to the pollution of the creek. Citizens allege that the new plant itself is releasing massive quantities of sewage into the creek and this is done clandestinely at night.

"It is easy to blame slum-dwellers for releasing sewage into the creek or defecating in it, but it is the STP, which clandestinely releases sewage into it," alleges Savio Fonseca, a local resident.

Read more here - TOI - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/The-capital-citys-open-sewage-line/articleshow/39779042.cms

Faulty connection spews sewage on road in Pimple Saudagar

PUNE: Overflowing manholes on a road near Challenger Public School in Pimple Saudagar are causing waterlogging besides giving out unbearably foul smell.

Machindra Kale, who lives in a housing society nearby, said the problem is not new. "The drainage line overflows every year after a heavy spell of rain. This year, it has been happening for the last 15 days or more. If you look carefully, one of the manhole covers has been deliberately kept open. It looks like the pipeline cannot bear the load of the sewage that flows through it," said Kale, who has stopped taking his grandson out for a walk because of the mess and the foul smell.

The leakage poses health challenge not only for the school and a multispecialty hospital nearby, but also for several multi-storeyed premium housing societies located on the road adjacent to the new road.

Read more here - TOI - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/pune/Faulty-connection-spews-sewage-on-road-in-Pimple-Saudagar/articleshow/39717250.cms

Jusco starts auto sewage pumping & control system

JAMSHEDPUR: Jamshedpur Utilities and Services Company (Jusco) has implemented an automated sewage pumping and control system in the city in a first of its kind attempts to save water and energy as well prevent pollution due to real-time information availability.

With 24 hours and seven day sewage pumping system and services, the company has introduced a system that can control and monitor all the 10 sewage pumping stations through internet-enabled supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA).

The city-based utility services firm Jusco maintains 10 sewage pumping stations which convey the city's sewage to two sewage treatment plants located at Bara and Bistupur, respectively.

Read more here - TOI - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ranchi/Jusco-starts-auto-sewage-pumping-control-system/articleshow/39400297.cms

National Ganga River Basin Authority approves sewage treatment plant at Bithoor

KANPUR: A team of National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA) met the officials of Kanpur Development Authority on Wednesday evening and expressed interest in the River Front Development Project. NGRBA team had also approved a proposal to set up a sewage treatment plant at Bithoor which will cost Rs 60 crores.

The KDA team demonstrated its ambitious River Front Development project of Rs 300 crores before the visiting team. The NGRBA team asked KDA to give proposal of the first phase in which the bank between Ganga Barrage and Bhairoghat had to be developed. The KDA apprised the team that under this project, vacant land along the 11-km long bank from Ganga Barrage to Jajmau would be developed as picnic spot and entertainment parks.

The team was told that construction of pathways, picnic spots on vacant land and road to access river along with parking lot would be developed under the project.

Read more here - TOI - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kanpur/National-Ganga-River-Basin-Authority-approves-sewage-treatment-plant-at-Bithoor/articleshow/38991208.cms

6 sewage plants to be set up as first step in Ganga cleaning

NEW DELHI: Kicking off the process to implement its ambitious clean Ganga mission, the Centre has sanctioned six new sewage treatment plants (STPs) for different cities and towns along the river in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal.

These STPs, cleared under the national mission for clean Ganga (NMCG), will come up in Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh; Beur, Karmalichak and Saidpur (Patna) in Bihar and Budge Budge and Barrackpore in West Bengal at an estimated cost of Rs 1058 crore. Thus the environment ministry has set the ball rolling by clearing these six plants\networks which will treat over 113 million litres per day (MLD) of sewage. 

There are a number of other plans lined up for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's pet project, which are to be announced in due course after studying the feasibility reports. 

"These new plants will add up the capacity to treat sewage in these cities\towns. The Centre will bear 70% of the cost of these new projects," said the environment minister Prakash Javadekar, explaining how the STPs are important to stop filth from going into the river. 

Replying to a debate in Lok Sabha on Tuesday, the minister rued the poor functioning of the existing STPs in different states due to shortage of electricity and expressed the need to ensure proper functioning of these plants in future.

Read more here - TOI - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/developmental-issues/6-sewage-plants-to-be-set-up-as-first-step-in-Ganga-cleaning/articleshow/38985000.cms