Cuttack, Sept. 3: The Japan government funded Rs 754.44-crore integrated state-of-the-art sanitation project will be launched in Cuttack in October.

“As land acquisition for the project, which is expected to fix the age-old problem of temporary inundation in the city during heavy rain, is on track, work on it will start before the Durga Puja,” mayor Saumendra Ghosh told The Telegraph today.

Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) is the main stakeholder of the project that envisages construction of 230km of underground gravity, sewers and pumping stations across the city with sewage treatment plants at Bidanasi, Matagajpur and Banabidyadharpur to facilitate smooth passage of storm water into the rivers during heavy rainfall. This network of separate drains, sewers and pumping stations will reduce waterlogging problems in the low-lying areas.

Official sources said around 74 acres was needed to set up 34 pumping channels and six dumping yards. While 67 acres are government land, the rest are private properties. The state urban development department had acquired more than 50 per cent of the land.

“As land required in the initial phase of the project has already been acquired, starting construction work in a month will not be a problem. The chief minister will launch the project,” Ghosh said. The project is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2014.

The survey work was completed nearly two years ago, but inauguration of the project had not followed.

“The project was planned to be inaugurated on Local Self-Government Day on August 31. But it was deferred because of procedural delay,” the mayor said.

Project details indicated that an additional 52 million litres of wastewater would be treated daily at these treatment plants. This will be in addition to the 33 million litres that is now being treated and safely discharged into Mahanadi and Kathajodi rivers without causing pollution at the discharge points.

“For improvement of drainage facilities, 30km of the existing main storm water drains and connecting sewers in the city will be renovated or constructed under the project,” a senior CMC official said.

The project is being implemented with the support of a project management consultants consortium of Tokyo Engineering Consultants Company, Japan, Tetra Tech Inc, USA and Egis BCEOM International, France.

Of the total project cost, the Japanese government will fund Rs 624.65 crore through the Japan International Cooperation Agency as loan assistance to be repaid by the state government in 40 years, that includes a moratorium period of 10 years, with an interest rate of 0.75 per cent per annum. The rest of the cost will be borne by the state government.