All is set for Orathanad to become the first town panchayat in Thanjavur district to get an underground drainage system. Work on the project costing Rs. 18.25 crore is nearing completion and it is expected that the system would be commissioned by the end of next month.
The households in the Orathanad town that has 15 wards solely depend on septic tanks for draining sewage water that would be disposed off periodically through suction units.
The present population of the town panchayat is 11,500 and it has been taken as the base population but the new system is designed to meet the demands of the peak population of 15,000 by 2044. The interim population by 2029 is expected to be 13,000 and the UGD system will easily take care of the demands, Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage Board, vested with the task of implementing the project, say.
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Based on the population projections, the sewage water generation is estimated to be 1.50 million litres per day in 2044 and 1.30 million litres per day at the interim stage of 2029, by fixing the sewage generation at 100 litres per capita demand.
Sewer lines with diameter range of 150 mm to 300 mm have been laid for a distance of 14.719 km to convey the sewage water generated in the town and they have 544 manholes to link 2,273 households in the town that is being considered as a single zone for the purpose. A main pumping station and two other pumping stations have been established to pump the sewage water generated.
The sewage will be channelised to Muthambalpuram on the outskirts of the town where a major sewage treatment plant has been established using the activated sludge process technology to process the collected sewage water.
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The treatment plant’s design meets the installed capacity of 1.50 million litre per day. The treated water will be utilised to irrigate grass meadows meant for raising fodder for cattle at the Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University campus in the Muthambalpuram region, according to Collector N. Subbaiyan.
Final stage works are under way at the sewage treatment plant and the whole underground drainage system will be ready for commissioning by June.
But the most important aspect is that the State Government had sanctioned Rs. 11 crore for repairing and renovating roads that were dug up to lay sewer lines and other works related to the UGD system in the town and utilising the amount the roads have been repaired and renovated for the benefit of the public. That work too is nearing completion.
TWAD Board Superintending Engineer M.K. Rajeswari and Executive Engineer A.P. Rajasekaran detailed the progress and the salient features of the project.