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Ludhiana: Bioremediation of 5L MT legacy waste at main dump site begins
Bioremediation of 5 lakh metric tonnes legacy waste accumulated at Ludhiana municipal corporation’s (MC’s) main dump site on Tajpur Road started on Tuesday
Bioremediation of 5 lakh metric tonnes legacy waste accumulated at municipal corporation’s (MC’s) main dump site on Tajpur Road started on Tuesday.
The project was inaugurated by local bodies minister Inderbir Singh Nijjar. As per the Nijjar, the contractor has been given 22 months to dispose of the waste, but assured that the work will be completed within 12 months by deploying additional machines. The project is being taken up under Smart City Mission at a cost of ₹27.17 crore.
Officials stated that the Maharashtra based firm which has been allotted the contract will segregate the legacy waste into three parts - bio-soil, refuse derived fuel (RDF) and construction waste material like rubble. The RDF will be sold to cement companies.
Nijjar stated that after the project is completed, MC will get around 12 acres of vacant land at the dump site, which will further be used for improve solid waste management.
Nijjar stated that the tendering process is underway to dispose of the remaining 20 lakh metric tonnes of waste in the next phase. MC has already been allotted around ₹100 crore for the project.
Mayor Balkar Sandhu, MC commissioner Shena Aggarwal and deputy commissioner (DC) Surabhi Malik were also present at the inauguration.
In total, 25 lakh metric tonnes of waste is dumped at the site. In August, NGT had imposed an interim compensation of ₹100 crore on the civic body over its failure to dispose of the waste. Spread over an area of 51.36 acre, fire incidents are frequently reported from the dump site due to generation of highly combustible methane gas from the waste.
Bio-CNG plant in pipeline
To deal with the 1,100 metric tonnes of waste generated in the city daily which is also disposed of at the main dump site, MC is working on a project to set up a bio-CNG plant. officials said. Wet waste will be processed at the plant, while an alternative is being explored to deal with dry waste.
Vertical gardens on Southern Bypass by Jan
Nijjar also inaugurated the project to establish vertical gardens on pillars of Southern Bypass near BRS Nagar canal bridge on Tuesday.
The vertical gardens will be established on 31 pillars of the flyover at a cost of ₹2.17 crore under Smart City Mission. Colourful lights have already been installed at the flyover . The contractor will also take up maintenance of the vertical gardens or three years. The mayor said the gardens will be established by January.
He stated that 260 plants of different varieties will be used and a dedicated drip irrigation facility will be set up to water them daily.
Nijjar pointed out that vertical gardens on flyovers have also been established in Delhi and Jammu, where they have received a positive response from the public.
