Defunct sewage treatment plant in the area forces residents to rely on hired tankers that dump the sewage water in open fields or in under construction drains.
A defunct sewage treatment plant (STP) set up by the Ghaziabad Development Authority in Raj Nagar Extension has become a cause for concern for residents of over 50 residential societies in the area.
Residents complain that they have to rely on hired tankers that dump the sewage water from the societies in open fields or in under construction drains. The sewage water is first collected in pits in these societies.
They say the construction of the 56 MLD sewage treatment plant is almost complete but blame the authority concerned for its non-operational status.
Pramod Dhanked, a resident of River Heights, told City Spidey, “Due to the defunct STP, residents had no other choice, but to dump the sewage water in the open. This not only pollutes the ground water but also makes the area unhygienic.”
“Some of the societies have their own STPs, which treat the water. But the water has to be dumped somewhere as the area does not have a functional sewage disposal system. This costs residents lakhs of rupees every year,” Dhanked added.
Hari Om Bansal, a resident of Ajnara Integrity, says, “The sewage water in my society is dumped in under construction drains of the area. But sometimes the drains overflow and dirty the area. The problem needs a permanent solution.”
When City Spidey asked Bansal about the cost incurred in such activities, he said that as most societies were managed by the builder, the builder paid for dumping the waste water, but the cost was borne by residents in indirect ways.
Residents are also concerned that with the growing population in the area, generation of sewage was also increasing. They say that the makeshift solution for dumping the sewage water in the open will not last long and will have adverse effects on the environment.
According to sources, the work for laying sewage pipelines on the few hundred metres of stretch between the STP and the residential areas in Raj Nagar Extension has been held up due to objections by farmers who own the land.
When City Spidey spoke to SC Dwivedi, chief engineer of GDA, he said that some work of the sewage treatment plant has been held up due to a Supreme Court stay order that barred construction work. “We expect an order soon and the matter to be resolved accordingly,” he added.
