Sabarimala STP to be ready by mid-December

Plant expected to reduce pollution in the Pampa river and forests

Work in progress on the sewage treatment plant at Sabarimala Sannidhanam on Friday. Photo: Leju Kamal

The Travancore Devaswom Board and the State government are keen on commissioning the much awaited modern sewage treatment plant under construction at Sabarimala Sannidhanam this year itself.

The civil work of the Rs.22.7-crore project, undertaken by the Kochi-based Vasco Environmental (India) Private Ltd on behalf of the Hyderabad-based Ramky Constructions Private Ltd, is nearing completion at a fast pace so that its mechanical work comprising setting up of machinery could be over within the next month.

Talking to The Hindu , A.V. Viswanatha Menon, Vasco managing director, himself a postgraduate in Environmental Engineering from the United States, said the company was confident of making the plant operational by mid-December.

Collection tank

Mr. Menon said 99 per cent of the sewerage-laying work had been completed and the giant collection tank would be ready within two weeks.

The machinery, most of which was imported from the U.S., Singapore, and China, would reach Sabarimala within 10 days and it could take three to four days for erecting the machinery, Mr. Menon said.

He said the company had lost a valuable five months with the chemical blasting of rocks owing to objections raised by the Forest Department till the latter permitted controlled blasting following an intervention by the State High Court in mid-September.

But for this avoidable time lag, the project could have been commissioned during the monthly puja period in October, he said.

‘A dream project’

Devaswom Commissioner P. Venugopal termed the STP a dream project of the State government and the TDB as it could reduce pollution in the Pampa river and the forest environs to a great extent.

M.N. Jayakumar, general manager of the company, and A. Siddique, senior site engineer, who have been staying at the work site, said 200 workers were working round the clock in three shifts.

As per the agreement, the project was supposed to be completed in June, 2015. However, the 15-member project management team of Vasco Environmental was determined to complete it six months ahead of schedule, he said.