Srinagar, Sep 28 (KNO): The Jammu and Kashmir Government on Monday informed the Legislative Assembly that the proposed Integrated Solid Waste Management (ISWM) project at Achan in Srinagar, estimated to cost rupees 361 crore, is currently at the tendering stage.
The government said the project has an estimated waste-processing capacity of 800 tonnes per day (TPD) and a construction timeline of 24 months.
In its reply to a question raised by MLA Mubarak Gul, the Housing and Urban Development Department, as per the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), said the project comprises composting facilities, a Bio-CBG plant, Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs), a Refuse-Derived Fuel (RDF) facility, a scientific sanitary landfill, transfer stations, leachate management infrastructure and other ancillary environmental infrastructure.
The government said no agency or contractor has been allotted the project so far, as it remains under the tendering process. On the present management of municipal solid waste, the government said the Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) is managing around 500–550 TPD of waste generated within Srinagar through an integrated system of collection, transportation, processing and disposal.
It said SMC has achieved 100 percent door-to-door collection of municipal solid waste across Srinagar city, while source segregation has improved substantially, with around 60 percent of waste being segregated at source.
The government further said more than 2,700 sanitation workers have been engaged in collection, transportation and sanitation activities, while waste transportation has been strengthened through more than 380 vehicles, including compactors and dumper placers.
On resource recovery, the government said SMC has established a 100 TPD Material Recovery Facility at Achan for the segregation and recovery of recyclable materials, including plastics, paper, cardboard and metals.
The facility, it said, is operated and maintained by a specialised agency for scientific processing, recovery and channelisation of recyclable material to authorised recyclers and end users.
Regarding legacy waste, the government said work for the bio-mining and bioremediation of around 11 lakh metric tonnes of waste at the Achan dumpsite has been awarded to a specialised agency.
It said windrow formation and associated civil works are currently in progress, while scientific segregation, recovery of recyclable material and stabilisation of waste fractions are being undertaken as part of the remediation process.
The government also said work on a 60-KLD leachate treatment plant at Achan is in progress for the scientific management and disposal of leachate. On construction and demolition waste, the government said a 125 TPD C&D Waste Management Facility is being established at Achan under SBM-U 2.0.
“The work has been awarded to the contractor. Civil work has been completed, while mechanical work and equipment installation are presently under progress,” the government said.
The facility, upon commissioning, will enable scientific processing of C&D waste, recovery and reuse of construction materials and reduction in illegal dumping, besides promoting recycling and conservation of natural resources.—(KNO)