Delhi govt to build 12 STPs worth Rs 7,200 cr

New Delhi: The Delhi government is planning to construct 12 new sewage treatment plants at an estimated cost of Rs 7,200 crore, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said on Friday.

Presenting her government's one-year report card, Gupta noted that Rs 9,000 crore had been allocated for the rejuvenation of the Yamuna over the past year.

"Cleaning Yamuna was a legacy problem. When we took over, it was evident that the previous government did not pay much attention to river. We started revamping the existing infrastructure, including the planned construction of 12 new STPs," Gupta said.

The initiatives are part of a 45-point action plan launched last year to clean the river. The project aims to tap all large drains that discharge waste into the Yamuna and redirect them to treatment facilities.

"We have completed drone surveys and tapping of all these drains. The government is planning 35 new decentralised STPs at a cost of Rs 2,400 crore," the chief minister said, adding that these decentralised STPs are being planned in areas where large STPs cannot be built due to space constraints.

The 22 kilometers stretch of the Yamuna from Wazirabad to Okhla remains the focal point of these effors efforts. Gupta noted that the government aims to increase the city's total sewage treatment capacity to 1,500 million gallons per day (MGD).