Berhampur: The Berhampur Municipal Corporation’s (BeMC) proposed greywater management project to treat wastewater of the city before releasing it into reservoirs has hit a stonewall after a survey team, deputed by the state government for assessment, left before completing its work.
According to reports, the new government in the state decided to withdraw the survey team. Meanwhile, City residents have expressed concerns that BeMC’s lack of commitment to urban development may hinder the project’s successful implementation. Currently, faecal sludge from toilets is processed through a septage treatment plant.
However, there is no system in place to treat wastewater from kitchens, bathrooms, laundry, and various institutions. As a result, the untreated wastewater is flowing into the sea through drainage channels.
According to a survey conducted by the BeMC, the City discharges approximately 64 million liters per day (MLD) of wastewater which reaches the sea via the Sapua and Bahana drainage systems, contributing to pollution. While greywater management is operational in four major cities in the state, Berhampur is yet to implement the system. The plan originally proposed a four-phase treatment process.
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In the first phase, wastewater from households would be treated at nearby filtration pits. Subsequent phases included neighborhood-level treatment, additional processing at drainage endpoints, and finally, the establishment of a central treatment plant to repurpose the treated water for other uses. To ensure successful implementation, a city-wide household survey was conducted, assessing the presence and condition of septic tanks in each home. The survey began January 6, 2024, covering every Ward in the city. It involved the septic tanks installed in every households and whether they were properly covered or not. Swachha Sathis and supervisors were engaged for the survey work. A provision was made to pay them Rs 15 per household. So far, surveys have been completed in 46,353 households. However, it has been reported that the survey work is still incomplete in all the Wards.
Additionally, the previous state government had engaged an organisation named ‘Tulip’ to conduct a drainage lane survey in each Ward. However, according to information obtained from the BeMC, the new administration withdrew the organisation’s contract following a change in government. As a result, the survey work remains stalled, delaying the grey water management project. When contacted, BeMC Executive Engineer Nageshwar Subudhi said that ‘Tulip’ had submitted 75 per cent of the survey report to the state government, while the remaining 25 per cent is yet to be completed. “A request has been made to the state government to deploy a team for the survey’s completion. Once the survey is fi nished, the project work will commence,” he said.