Modern sewage treatment plant at Panjapur likely to be ready ahead of the deadline, say officials

Work on the modern sewage treatment plant (STP) at Panjapur, on Tiruchi-Madurai National Highway, is progressing at a brisk pace with the authorities expecting to complete it ahead of the deadline.

Work on the modern sewage treatment plant (STP) at Panjapur, on Tiruchi-Madurai National Highway, is progressing at a brisk pace with the authorities expecting to complete it ahead of the deadline.

The STP is being established under the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) 2.0 at an estimated cost of ₹216.20 crore. It will replace the existing one and have the capacity to treat about 100 million litres a day (MLD) of sewage pumped in from 50 of the 65 wards in the city. The work on the STP commenced in March 2024.

Initially, the work was progressing at a slow pace. However, it gradually gained momentum, and the civic body aims to complete it before March 2026 as it was being set up to serve more areas that would be part of the city soon.

On Monday, Commissioner V. Saravanan inspected the project site and instructed the officials to expedite the work. “We have been asked to monitor the progress daily and the construction will be completed well ahead. We hope the rainfall does not delay the project,” said a senior Corporation official.

According to officials, the STP will re-treat the sewage water using sequencing batch reactors (SBR) technology, ensuring that there was no seepage. The treated wastewater will conform to the standards of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) and Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) and can be reused.

At present, the city generates around 50 MLD of sewage per day . The sewage is treated at the existing 88 MLD capacity STP in Panjapur. As some village panchayats are set to be merged with the city, the sewage collection per day is expected to reach 140 MLD in 2031.

While the existing plant occupies around 274 acres of land, the new STP with 100 MLD capacity is being built on only about 20 acres of land. After the new STP is commissioned, the civic body will dismantle the old plant and utilise the space for other projects.