Chennai waste and water facilities undergo federal inspection

India’s Housing and Urban Affairs Secretary Satendra Singh visited four municipal facilities in Chennai on October 10, The Hindu reported. The inspection covered biogas production, wastewater treatment, garbage-collection vehicles and the Kodungaiyur dump.

The public-private biogas plant in Chetpet processes organic waste supplied by the city. It handles 120 to 140 tonnes daily against a capacity of 140 tonnes. Chennai generates 6,150 tonnes of waste a day, including about 3,200 tonnes of biodegradable material and 2,950 tonnes of non-biodegradable waste and road silt, according to the report.

Singh examined a tertiary wastewater treatment facility in Koyambedu that uses reverse osmosis. Its daily capacity is 45 million litres. Two such units together treat 90 million litres for water reuse.

At Kodungaiyur, the visit assessed work to excavate and process accumulated waste. The dump occupies 333 acres, with waste previously covering more than 252 acres. The 6.41-billion-rupee reclamation project, equivalent to 641 crore rupees, is divided into six work packages. Six acres had been reclaimed by the time of the inspection.

The secretary also visited a workshop for maintaining and charging electric three-wheelers used in garbage collection. Tamil Nadu municipal administration and water supply official Gagandeep Singh Bedi, city officials and representatives of Chennai’s water supply and sewerage board participated.