Dehradun, Jul 29 (PTI) A 600 kilo litres per day (KLD) sewage treatment plant being constructed in Kedarnath is not enough to treat the waste generated by the number of pilgrims visiting the Himalayan temple daily during the peak yatra season, an environment activist said on Tuesday and demanded enhancing its capacity or construction of another STP of higher capacity to fulfil the requirements.
According to authorities, the under-construction sewage treatment plant (STP) is fine for a permanent population of 5,000 and the floating population of 20,000 at the temple, Noida-based environment and RTI activist Amit Gupta said.
Considering the steady rise in pilgrim footfall at the temple over the past few years, which crossed 30,000 on May 2 and 25,000 on May 3, a 600 KLD STP in Kedarnath is not enough to treat the waste generated together by the pilgrims and residents of Kedarpuri, he said.
He demanded that the capacity of the 600 KLD STP in Kedarnath must be enhanced and, if possible, another STP with a higher capacity should be built at the temple.
“The current capacity of the under-construction STP is 600 KLD for approx 25,000 people, which means around 25 litres per day per person, which is less than what is required. At Kedarnath ji, we need an STP of at least 1,500-2,000 KLD capacity,” Gupta told PTI.
All the untreated waste in Kedarnath is released into the Mandakini river, which is a tributary of the Ganga, he said.
Asked how much waste is generated in Kedarnath per day, Gupta quoted Nagar Panchayat Kedarnath’s reply to an RTI query filed by him in November 2024 and said around 17.50 tons of organic and 8.60 tons of inorganic waste was generated in 2024 yatra season, which means around 26 tons of total waste in six months and 150 kg per day.
However, authorities are now waking up to the concerns raised by Gupta through a series of affidavits and RTI queries.
“Last month, the Uttrakhand Pollution Control Board had asked the PWD to consider my request for increasing the capacity of the under-construction STP in Shri Kedarnath ji,” he said.
“Now, in response to that letter, PWD Guptakashi has written a letter to OSD Kedarnath Charitable Trust (that supervises re-development work at Kedarnath ji) with facts and mentioned that there are many Sulabh Toilets etc, which are outside the masterplan and need to be brought under the coverage area of the STP,” he said. PTI ALM ALM KSS KSS
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