The Hindu : Hurdles no more to sewer project

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, May 03, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Tamil Nadu

Hurdles no more to sewer project

By T. Ramakrishnan

CHENNAI MAY 2. The "ambitious scheme" to provide underground sewer systems in 14 municipalities and two municipal corporations, at an estimated cost of Rs. 844 crores, may become a reality this time, say urban managers.

In recent times, such schemes have run into rough weather, with problems in either raising resources or finding a proper site to dispose of waste. The threat of political controversies stopping work was real.

"Keep them aside. Plans and detailed engineering reports for all areas are at an advanced stage. Though some more formalities are to be gone through for the execution to start, we are hopeful of completing the programme in two years", says a senior official.

Last week, the Government announced that the underground sewerage schemes would be taken up this year in the Ambattur, Tiruvottiyur, Kancheepuram, Ambur, Ranipet, Walajapet, Tirupur, Tambaram, Pallavaram, Avadi, Erode, Tiruvarur, Vellore and Chengalpattu municipalities, and also in the Coimbatore and Salem Corporations.

This is not the first time the schemes have been proposed for the Ambattur, Tambaram and Pallavaram municipalities. Coimbatore and Kancheepuram have got underground sewer systems, but the network does not cover the entire local body. The first point raised by sceptics is the source of funding, but planners say funds from various sources are going to be pooled in and utilised.

Of course, resources of the Tamil Nadu Urban Infrastructure Financial Services and the Urban Finance and Infrastructure Development Corporation will be tapped. This apart, the schemes for the Ambur, Ranipet and Walajapet municipalities will be brought under the National River Conservation Project. The Tirupur Area Development Project will take care of the requirement of the knitwear town.

User-participation

Besides, a segment of the project cost will be met from user contribution and, in view of "hard lessons learnt from the Ambattur experience", a realistic estimate is being made, the officials point out.

Explaining the rationale behind the user-participation concept, the officials say it will help to reduce the interest burden on the local bodies, which may otherwise have to incur it.

Another problem is the disposal site factor. In fact, the Pallavaram and Tambaram schemes were earlier held up as the Pollution Control Board insisted on "safe disposal" of the treated sewage. "Now, we have addressed this issue and sorted it out". Sewage generated at Pallavaram will be taken to the Perungudi treatment plant and at Tambaram, the treated sewage let into Adyar river near Somangalam. In respect of most of the areas including Tiruvarur and Chengalpattu, the plan is to let treated sewage for use in irrigation.

One more aspect is avoidance of a "negative political impact" on the programme at the stages of both implementation and maintenance. In addition to the routine of the local bodies adopting resolutions for execution, broader consultations with all major political players may be required not only for smooth implementation but also for the success of the project. Citizens in these municipalities have to be motivated to switch to the underground sewer system. The political parties can best perform this function. Otherwise, the project may meet with the fate of an experiment done in Tiruchi, Coimbatore or Tuticorin, say urban experts.

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