Crores spent on Guruvayur municipal drainage system go down the drain

Chakkamkandam residents against municipality's decision to discharge sewage water

- GOPIKA VARRIER @Thrissur

A PROJECT of Rs 21.80 crore. Years of planning and a pipeline stretching over 45 km. A sewage treatment plant that was set up amid widespread protests. Yet, the system failed and residents of Chakkamkandam are up in arms against the decision of the LDF-led Guruvayur Municipality to collect sewage water in tanker lorries and bring it to the dysfunctional sewage treatment plant.

Inaugurated in 2022 by Water Resources Minister Roshy Augustine, the Guruvayur Drainage System project was implemented spending a huge fund. The drainage system at Guruvayur is managed by the Kerala Water Authority. The sewage treatment plant at Chakkamkandam has the capacity to treat 35 lakh litres and as per the claims of the authorities, the water would be of drinking quality after treatment. Under the project, sewage waste from hotels and commercial enterprises in Guruvayur is collected through the underground pipelines and brought to two tanks. The collected sewage is pumped to the treatment plant where it is first taken into an aeration tank, and then to a compressor. Carbon filter and sand filter tanks are also used in the treatment process.