Paradip, May 8: The prospects of an early launch of a solid waste management project in Paradip have brightened as experts from the World Bank visited the town to expedite the Rs 18-crore project under the integrated coastal zone management programme (ICZMP).
The hurdle for the World Bank funded project in Paradip port town was cleared earlier after a 50-acre plot was selected for the waste treatment plant that will come up under the ambitious waste management plan.
“The site where the waste management plant would come up is located at New Sandhakuda on the outskirts of the port town. World Bank personnel visited the site on Wednesday and were satisfied with the spot. The team interacted with administrative officials, Paradip Port Trust (PPT) authorities, the stakeholders and port users for the successful implementation of the project,” said Surajit Das, additional district magistrate, Paradip.
The project had been delayed because of a land dispute between the Odisha government and PPT. The port authorities had laid claim to the site. But with PPT giving consent for use of the said plot, the 50-acre plot at New Sandhakuda has been handed over to the Paradip municipality so that work on the project may start, Das said.
Work on the solid waste management project will start soon and be completed in a year’s time. The project is worth Rs 18 crore. This is first project in Odisha to be executed under ICZMP, said an official.
The bustling port town does not have an urban solid waste management and treatment system. The huge volume of solid waste generated every day from the port town is sent to a dump yard on the outskirts of the port township. The ill effects of such an arrangement are largely felt by people living in slums close to the dumping yard near Bangalipada.
“The project is of great significance to a growing industrial township like Paradip. The project will include a state-of-the-art solid waste treatment plant installed to treat and process the waste with modern technology,” said Das.
Every day, 48 metric tonnes of solid waste is generated from the town’s municipal limits.
