Agriculture Minister P. Prasad inaugurating a district-level programme in connection with the Malinya Mukta Nava Keralam campaign and a sewage treatment plant at a function held at General Hospital, Alappuzha, on Wednesday. | Photo Credit: SURESH ALLEPPEY

Minister inaugurates STP in Alappuzha General Hospital compound

Prasad says the public and existing systems have an obligation to find and provide places to dispose of waste safely

by · The Hindu

Agriculture Minister P. Prasad has said that strict legal action should be initiated to prevent dumping of waste on roads and public places.

Inaugurating a district-level programme in connection with the Malinya Mukta Nava Keralam campaign of the State government here on Wednesday, Mr. Prasad said the public and existing systems had an obligation to find and provide places to dispose of waste safely.

The Minister also inaugurated a Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) constructed in the compound of General Hospital, Alappuzha. He asked the authorities to take legal action against violators based on the Public Health Act and water conservation rules. Mr. Prasad, however, said that finding places to dispose of septage was turning out to be a daunting task.

Stating that people have a big role in managing waste, the Minister urged them to build things based on needs. The Malinya Mukta Nava Keralam campaign, which aims at attaining garbage-free Kerala, will continue till March 31, 2025.

At ₹3.45 crore

The STP was constructed by the Alappuzha municipality spending ₹3.45 crore sanctioned under the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT). The plant with a capacity to treat 2.40 lakh litres of wastewater uses the electrocoagulation method. Wastewater from the outpatient block, 400-bed inpatient block, nursing college quarters and so on will be treated at the STP.

Officials said the treated water released from the treatment plant would meet the standards of the Pollution Control Board. An ultra-filtration unit had also been installed to reuse the treated water for toilet flushing.

P.P. Chitharanjan, MLA, Alappuzha municipal chairperson K.K. Jayamma, District Collector Alex Varghese, Alappuzha district panchayat vice president N.S. Sivaprasad and others attended the function.

Published - October 02, 2024 06:10 pm IST