As a part of its upgradation of the sewage disposal system, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has made a significant provision of Rs 247 crore for setting up seven sewage treatment plants, and it will also spend Rs 119.51 crore on laying trench-less sewage lines in 2016-17.
According to civic officials, all of Mumbai’s sewage is disposed into the sea through marine outfalls at Colaba, Worli and Banda and into the creek after they are treated in the lagoons of Versova, Bhandup and Ghatkopar. The sewerage system in the city covers only 91.50 per cent of the developed area and the BMC proposes to cover 100 per cent by the end of 2020.
Work on the seven plants has already begun; the first plant located at Colaba is to be converted to handle 37 million litres per day (mld) at the cost of Rs 80 crore, for which tenders have already been invited. It will be followed by Bhandup (which will handle 215 mld) for Rs 50 crore and the Ghatkopar plant (337 mld) at the cost of Rs 70 crore.
Two new plants at Worli and Bandra are yet to be built. With a capacity of 493 mld, the Worli plant will be built on 12 hectares of the civic body’s land near Lovegrove at the cost of Rs 15 crore and the Bandra plant at reclamation and Dharavi on 36 hectares at the cost of Rs 24.50 crore.
The Versova plant will be upgraded at the cost of Rs 2 crore. The consultants for these works have been appointed to carry out the feasibility study for the final plant at Malad zone at the cost of Rs 14 crore. “With these sewage treatment plants, we plan the reduce the pollution in the city’s sea water. The water treated at these plants will also be used for non-drinking purposes,” said civic chief Ajoy Mehta.
