Work on STPs at Kozhikode MCH nearing completion

Kozhikode Corp. nearing completion of two sewage treatment plants (STPs) under Amrut-1 project. 90% of work done on 2-mld & 1-mld plants near Govt. Nursing College. Wall collapse delayed work, but Corp. expects to commission plants in this financial year. Other STPs at Avikkal Thodu & Kothi in limbo due to protests. Amrut-2 project to have twin STPs of 13.5 mld each, executed by Kerala Water Authority.

Work on the two sewage treatment plants being set up on the Government Medical College Hospital premises by the Kozhikode Corporation under the Amrut-1 project is nearing completion.

Public works standing committee chairman of the Corporation P.C. Rajan said that 90% of the work on the 2-mld plant and the 1-mld plant, located near the Government Nursing College, had been completed. “The collapse of a compound wall during rain delayed the work. If not for that, the plants would have been ready by now,” he said.

The work is being carried out as a joint venture of Green Eco Water Systems, Hyderabad, and LCGC Environmental Engineering, Kochi. The contract was drawn in January 2020 for an estimated cost of ₹12.84 crore. However, the contract had to be extended seven times since then, first due to the pandemic and later due to difficulties in getting several approvals. Recently, the contract was extended till July 31, 2023, when the construction companies pointed out that they needed a little more time to complete the plants that were 75%-90% completed at the time. However, the wall collapse sabotaged the plans.

As the construction of the said compound wall is in progress, the Corporation expects to commission the plant in this financial year.

Meanwhile, work on the other STPs under the Kozhikode Corporation has not progressed much. Projects at Avikkal Thodu (6 mld) and Kothi (7 mld) are still in limbo due to protests by local communities. On the other hand, the Corporation has included its plan for a much larger STP at Karimpanapalam near Sarovaram Bio Park under Amrut-2. The plan is to have a twin STP of 13.5 mld each (27 mld in total) that would cater to a very large part of the city. The project will be executed by the Kerala Water Authority.