Scrapping of Leh sewage treatment plant proposed

Consultancy firm recommends deep digging of nullah to reduce project cost

RAWALPINDI:

A consultancy firm has come up with the suggestion to scrap a sewage treatment plant that was supposed to be set up to treat the polluted water of Leh Expressway.

In the new feasibility report prepared by consultancy firm, NESPAK, it has been suggested to do away with the sewage treatment plant — supposed to be set up in Gorakhpur for treating sewer and polluted water of Leh Expressway or surface runoff (stormwater, rainwater) using sewers and trenches — and instead dig 2000-meter deep into the nullah for the smooth flow of water.

The feasibility report has also proposed to spend a minimum sum on the acquisition of land by digging deep for the smooth flow of water in Leh Nullah instead of broadening its width to reduce the cost of the proposed Rs79.129 billion project.

According to sources, around Rs27 billion would be spent on the acquisition of land alone if the project saw the light of the day.

The Rs10 billion worth of treatment plant on a portion of a 5500-Kanal of the land in Gorakhpur had been planned initially to permanently do away with the environmental pollution caused by open sewage and polluted water.

According to sources, the new technical and financial report of Leh Expressway has been prepared which has suggested the exclusion of sewage treatment plant.

Read Nullah Leh — how natural channel turned into a drain

The NESPAK report will be presented to Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar for final approval.

The project has been hanging in the balance for over a decade before the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-led provincial government in Punjab announced to complete the vital project.

The total length of the project has been increased by 17 kilometres long and the government decided to build the complete project under public-private partnership owing to lack of funds.

After the scrapping of the sewage treatment plant, the sewerage channel will remain open, which will continue to pose a serious environmental hazard for Rawalpindi city in the future.

The government had gained 5,000 Kanal land in the Gorakhpur area of Adyala many years ago for the establishment of a sewerage treatment plant that is under the control of the Water and Sanitation Authority (WASA).

In the initial plan of the Leh Expressway project, which is hanging in the balance for the last 15 years, it was envisaged that the open sewage of Nullah Leh will be channelised through safe sewer and trenches to the treatment plant in Gorakhpur. While the treated sewage water and manure was supposed to be used for irrigation.

The foundation laying of the project is also expected to be delayed further after the latest report.

After the scrapping to the sewage treatment plant, the Leh Expressway project will only be a traffic route, which is expected to cut traffic congestion, allow swift access to inter-city highways and motorways.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 21^st, 2021.