India News | Upgraded Okhla STP, Asia's Largest, to Be Operational in June: DJB

New Delhi, May 2 (PTI) The Okhla sewage treatment plant, Asia's largest, is set to become operational in June this year, Delhi Jal Board Vice Chairman Somnath Bharti said on Tuesday.

The plant's four phases are being upgraded and rehabilitated to meet the prescribed standards (less than 10 milligram per litre) for biological oxygen demand (BOD) and total soluble solids (TSS) in the treated wastewater.

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The upgraded plant will be able to treat 56.4 crore litres of wastewater every day from South Delhi, NDMC area, and other parts of the capital, benefiting around 40 lakh people.

The government spent Rs 1,161.17 crore on the project, which began in June 2019 under the third phase of the Yamuna Action Plan.

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The plant will also feature artificial lakes, and 15 to 20 MGD of treated water will be reused in them.

Bharti said this initiative would help reduce pollution in the Yamuna River.

Untapped wastewater from unauthorised colonies and jhuggi-jhopri clusters, and poor quality of treated wastewater discharged from sewage treatment plants and common effluent treatment plants is the main reason behind high levels of pollution in the Yamuna.

Twenty-two drains carrying domestic wastewater and industrial effluent fall into the Yamuna between Wazirabad and Okhla. Though the 22-km stretch is less than two per cent of the river length, it accounts for about 80 per cent of the pollution in the river.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)