Hyderabad to lead country soon in waste to energy conversion, says KTR

The Minister said Hyderabad would be leading the country in terms of waste-to-energy plants from the existing capacity of 24 MW to 101 MW by December 2024.

Hyderabad: Stressing on people’s participation in government initiatives in making the State scale new heights, Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister KT Rama Rao said Hyderabad would be leading the country in terms of waste-to-energy plants from the existing capacity of 24 MW to 101 MW by December 2024.

This apart, Hyderabad would be the only city in India to achieve 100 percent sewerage treatment by August end, he said while delivering the keynote address at the World Environment Day 2023 at the Administrative Staff College of India here.

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The Minister said there were 206 dry resource collection centres (DRCC) with a capacity of 750 Tonnes Per Day, wherein 87 DRCCs were being managed by SHG women and earning approximately Rs 6.3 crore revenue per year. The remaining 122 DRCCs dry waste was being sorted and bailed and being sold to recycling and RDF units, he said.

Bio-methanation Plant

The Minister said five ULBs – Suryapet, Medchal, Jawaharnagar, Kompally, and Dammaiguda – have scientific facilities for processing wet & dry waste and four Bio-methanation plants (18.5TPD) (GHMC (5), GWMC (2.5), Siddipet (10) Siricilla (1)) were converting organic waste to valuable bio-gas, which was being used for cooking.

Holy Waste Management

Under eco-friendly measures, an initiative named ‘Holy Waste’ was being taken up to adopt a circular economy approach and recycles floral waste of approximately 6 Tonnes Per Day into valuable products. This initiative is being taken up in temple towns of Vemulawada, Dharmapuri, Yadagirigutta and Alair jointly with Oorvi Sustainable Solutions Pvt ltd and VAGMI Mahila Sangam.

Bio-miming of Legacy Waste in 128 ULBs

Briefing about biomining measures being adopted in the State, the Minister said under the sustainable waste management practices and resource recovery, Telangana was undertaking a Bio-mining project with Rs. 178.60 crore in 128 ULBs in 9 Clusters. This would support unlocking the potential of valuable land in urban areas.

Faecal Sludge Treatment Plant

Emphasizing on safe faecal sludge and septage management as critical for better sanitation outcomes and building liveable urban areas, he said FSTPs were being set up in all 139 ULBs with Rs. 427.3 crores. “This is a path breaking initiative by the Telangana Government and we are the only State along with Odisha to have achieved such a feat,” Rama Rao said.

Explaining future plans, the Minister said the Government has approved setting up of Roof Top Solar Power Plants of 31.12 MW at STPs, Pump Houses, Reservoirs & Buildings of HMWSSB.

An MoU between HMWSSB, Prof. Jayashankar Agriculture University of Telangana, Indian Institute of Rice Research, Sustainable India Trust and Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, New Delhi, would be signed for study on Nutrients extraction from the byproducts of STPs and initiate measures to reduce the Carbon footprint in the STP operations, he added.

Hyderabad was being ranked top by different agencies and organizations for its achievements in diverse fields. It was adjudged the most Liveable City by Mercer for five years from 2015 to 2020. On Sunday, the Centre for Science and Environment ranked Telangana top for its overall performance in environmental initiatives, he said.

But if Hyderabad was to make a mark as a global city, people’s participation in government and local ULBs initiatives was required. Like Corporate Social Responsibility, Individual Social Responsibility was needed to make the society a better place for living and present a safe environment for next generations, he said.