Of the seven sewage treatment plants in Noida, treated water from five of them is flowing into drains.
Sunita Narain (left), Dr Bhure Lal (second from left) and Sanjeev Sharan (third from left) at the meeting
To prevent treated water from sewage treatment plants (STP) in Noida from going into waste, Sanjeev Sharan, additional chief secretary of the state government, environment and forest department, UP government, directed Noida Authority at a meeting to make a plan to address the issue. The meeting was held in Indira Gandhi Kala Kendra in Sector 6, Noida, on May 31.
Saran also ordered Noida Authority officials to prepare a detailed report of treated water utilization in Noida. He said, “Noida can be made a model city for reusing treated water and to avoid negative effects of dirty water, which is the source of toxic gases.”
The development came after Environment Pollution Protection Control Authority (EPPCA) on the same day criticized the Authority on the matter and asked it to ensure that treated water does not get mixed with effluent water.
Out of the seven STPs in Noida, only treated water from two of them (located in Sector 54) is being reused. Treated water from the other five STPs (two located in Sector 50, two in Sector 44 and one in Sector 23) flows into drains. City Spidey reported about the functioning of STPs installed in Noida and Delhi recently.
Dr Bhure Lal, chairman of EPPCA, who was also present in the meeting along with Saran and a some environmentalists, gave strict instructions to the Authority to put an end to this unhealthy practice.
He said, “I have intimated you time and again to reuse treated water for irrigation, gardening and industrial purposes but you did not pay heed. Kindly ensure proper utilisation of treated water. You will be held accountable. We can only suggest but implementation is in your hands.”
Meanwhile, Sunita Narain, a Delhi-based environmentalist, blamed the central government for its lackluster approach on the issue. She said, “Even the central government has so far failed to implement a system to solve this long-standing problem.”
