Faridabad, yet to begin sewage treatment, dumps 210ML effluent into Yamuna daily

With all four of its sewage treatment plants (STPs) lying defunct, Faridabad continues to be among Haryana’s largest polluters of the Yamuna, discharging close to

With all four of its sewage treatment plants (STPs) lying defunct, Faridabad continues to be among Haryana’s largest polluters of the Yamuna, discharging close to 210 million litres per day (MLD) of untreated sewage into the river. Gurugram, the second major polluter, discharges about 60MLD of untreated sewage into the Yamuna, while another 240MLD is partially treated), as per a 2019 report prepared by an NGT-appointed monitoring committee.

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On paper, Faridabad has the capacity to treat at least 160MLD of domestic sewage via its four STPs, including one 20MLD plant in Badshahpur, another 45MLD plant in Badshahpur, a 45MLD plant in Mujeri, and a fourth 50MLD plant in Pratapgarh. All of these are presently not operational, despite the NGT having imposed a December-2019 deadline for Haryana to ensure that all its STPs are functioning efficiently. “This makes Faridabad liable to pay environmental compensation of ₹5 lakh per STP per month, starting from January 2020, if the Tribunal so decides,” said PK MK Das, a member of the monitoring committee.

While Gurugram, being upstream from the river, has taken steps to curb the flow of sewage into the Najafgarh drain, Faridabad is yet to show any such action, pointed out Das and another committee member, who requested anonymity. “In Gurugram, there are two main STPs which are presently functioning. Their performance is not adequate, as per tests done in December 2019, but some basic infrastructure has been established by the GMDA. Similar efforts are yet to come from Faridabad,” said the second committee member.

Officials also said that Faridabad suffers from a dearth of adequate sewer lines. Only about a quarter of the required network of sewers has been built. As per the Haryana government’s submission in the NGT last year, only about 50,000 of 200,000 odd metres of required sewer network have been built so far. March 2020 has been set as the deadline for completion of the task. “Some progress in this regard has been made in the past few months, but it is of no use if the STPs are not operational,” said Das.

Yashpal Yadav, municipal commissioner, Faridabad, could not be contacted on Wednesday despite repeated attempts. However, a senior official of Municipal Commission of Faridabad, privy to the matter, seeking anonymity, said, “We are taking steps in the right direction. There is also significant financial cost involved in upgrading the abandoned STPs, hence the delay.”

As per an action plan submitted by Faridabad to the NGT, it will take at least another year to significantly tackle the issue of effluents being discharged into the Yamuna. The first STP scheduled to commence operation is a 10MLD plant being built under the Faridabad Smart City mission. This is expected to become operational by August 2020. In addition, a smaller 7.5MLD plant in Greater Faridabad in expected to come up around the same time.

“However, these are smaller plants will barely make any dent in the issue,” said Tarun Chopra, a Faridabad-based environmental activist, who has been closely tracking the matter. As for larger-capacity STPs, Faridabad had assured the monitoring committee that its 45MLD plant in Badshahpur would be operational by September 2019. “This has not yet happened,” Das confirmed.

The senior MCF official, speaking to Hindustan Times on Wednesday, said that its 50MLD plant at Pratapgarh would be upgraded to 150MLD by December 31, 2021. “The same applies to the Mujeri plant, which will be upgraded to 125MLD by December 31, 2021,” the official said, adding that these two plants, once operational, would be sufficient in solving the issue. Detailed project reports (DPRs) for these, though, are yet to be approved by the state government. “There will also be a new, smaller 30MLD plant that the HSVP will build in Badshahpur area, and the existing 20MLD plant will be shuttered. An industrial effluent treatment plant will come up in its place by April 2022,” he added.