Gadkari inaugurates 20 newly constructed/ restored ghats in UP

Speed Post News Network

New Delhi : Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation (RD & GR), Shipping, Road Transport & Highways Nitin Gadkari inaugurated 20 newly constructed/ restored Ghats on river Ganga at Kanpur and Bithoor in Uttar Pradesh (UP) on August 13, 2018.

The Minister also announced projects to tackle pollution from two of Kanpur’s biggest pollution hotspots – Jajmau- a source of industrial effluents, and Sisamau – source of domestic sewage.  Gadkari announced that a 20 MLD Common Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP) has been approved for Jajmau at an estimated cost of Rs 554 crore (phase-1) for the treatment of effluent from tanneries, according to a PIB release.

In addition, he also announced that the complete tapping of Sisamau Nala would be done by October this year. One hundred forty MLD of sewage from this nala used to fall untreated into Ganga earlier. Of this, 80 MLD of sewage has already been diverted to Bingawan STP. The remaining diversion will be complete by October this year.

Speaking at a ceremony at Chandrasekhar Azad University at Kanpur on August 13, Gadkari said that his Ministry is fully committed to cleaning Ganga and its tributary rivers, and there is no shortage of funds for this purpose. Stressing on the need to create wealth from waste, he said that methane from the sewage in Kanpur can be used for generating Bio-CNG, which can in turn be used for running the city transport.

Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath, Union Minister for Drinking Water and Sanitation Uma Bharti, MoS, MOWR, RD & GR, Dr Satya Pal Singh, Kanpur MP Murli Manohar and other dignitaries were also present on the occasion.

The 20 Ghats that were inaugurated on August 13 include Gola Ghat, Sarsaiya Ghat, Bhairav Ghat, Guptar Ghat, Koyala Ghat, Makjain Ghat, Sidhnath Ghat, Bhagwatdas Ghat, Massacre Ghat, Parmat Ghat, Chappar Ghat, Mahila & Tulsi Ram Ghat, Pandav Ghat, Pathar Ghat, Panchlameshwar Ghat, Sita Ghat, Bharat Ghat, Kaushalya Ghat and Tuta Ghat. Development of 4 Ghats and 3 crematoria are under progress and these will be inaugurated soon.

National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) has sanctioned 10 projects worth Rs 2,192 crore for Kanpur zone which includes Kanpur town, Unnao, Shuklaganj and Bithoor. The projects in Pankha (Kanpur), Unnao and Shuklaganj, as also the projects for  rehabilitation and Operations & Maintenance (O&M) of the existing STPs at Jajmau & Bingawan have been taken up under Hybrid Annuity Mode with O&M of 15 years and  for the first time One-Cluster-One-Operator approach has been taken to ensure accountability in operation of STPs and long term sustainability.

In order to improve cleanliness, silt removal and proper upkeep of Ghats in Kanpur and Bithoor zone, NMCG has recently sanctioned a project for regular cleaning of Ghats for 3 years at an estimated cost of Rs 6.07 crore. A trash skimmer for removal of floating trash is already deployed in Kanpur for river surface cleaning.

In Kanpur town, the current sewage generation is estimated at 375 MLD which is expected to increase to 460 MLD by 2035. Kanpur town already has an existing sewage treatment capacity of 457 MLD (Jajmau-205 MLD, Bingawan-210 MLD and Sazari-42 MLD) whereas 15 MLD STP is under construction at Baniyapurwa.

In Kanpur town, the project to divert Sisamau drain has been sanctioned at an estimated cost of Rs 63.8 crore. Sewerage network of 401 km will also be laid in Kanpur town.

Under the NamamiGange Program, 221 projects have been sanctioned for sewage infrastructure, Ghats and crematoria development, river front development, river surface cleaning, institutional development, biodiversity conservation, afforestation and rural sanitation at a total cost of Rs 22,238 crore. Out of these, 58 projects have been completed.