UP to set up 150 faecal sludge treatment plants in first phase

The decision was taken at a meeting of the mission’s governing body, chaired by panchayati raj minister Om Prakash Rajbhar in Lucknow on Tuesday. The first phase, scheduled for the financial year 2026-27, envisages two treatment plants in each district. The broader plan provides for one FSTP for every two development blocks across the state’s 826 blocks.

Uttar Pradesh will set up 150 faecal sludge treatment plants (FSTPs) across all 75 districts in the first phase of a larger plan to establish 400 such facilities in rural areas, as the state government seeks to strengthen waste management and achieve its Open Defecation Free (ODF) Plus targets under the Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) Phase-II.

The larger plan is to establish 400 such facilities in rural areas. (For representation)

The decision was taken at a meeting of the mission’s governing body, chaired by panchayati raj minister Om Prakash Rajbhar in Lucknow on Tuesday.

The first phase, scheduled for the financial year 2026-27, envisages two treatment plants in each district. The broader plan provides for one FSTP for every two development blocks across the state’s 826 blocks.

The government has directed the designated executing agency, Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (UPPCL), to complete the memorandum of understanding (MoU) process within 15 days so that construction can begin. The agency will also be responsible for operating and maintaining the plants for five years after their construction.

According to officials, the proposed facilities are intended to strengthen faecal sludge management in rural areas, an important component of sanitation beyond toilet construction and the achievement of ODF status. Their effective functioning will depend on timely construction, adequate waste collection and transportation arrangements, and sustained operations and maintenance.

The governing body also approved a state-wide information, education and communication (IEC) campaign to promote sanitation awareness and encourage behavioural changes in rural communities.

To ensure uniformity and transparency and avoid duplication of activities, an agency will be selected through an e-procurement tender process at the directorate level. The selected organisation will conduct awareness programmes across the state using LED vans, street plays, folk songs, wall paintings and school-level quiz competitions, officials said.

Rajbhar directed officials to ensure that the approved projects were completed within the stipulated timeframe and maintained to prescribed quality standards.

Principal secretary (panchayati raj) Ravindra, director Dhirendra Singh Sachan and special secretary Rajesh Tyagi, among other senior officials, attended the meeting.