Dadu Majra Dumping Ground: Chandigarh MC mulls buying leachate machine

Sandeep Rana

Chandigarh, March 7

Five months after the Municipal Corporation hired a leachate suction machine to lift and clean liquid discharge from manholes/road gullies at the Dadu Majra dumping ground and move it to the Sewage Treatment Plant, Maloya, the civic body has now realised buying the equipment costs nearly half the amount.

Half the upkeep cost

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• In Nov, MC hired a suction machine for six months to lift and clean leachate from dump site and discharge it at treatment plant
• It realised while the annual cost of operation and upkeep of machine was Rs 31L, purchasing cost half the amount i.e. Rs 17.50L

“It has been found the cost of procuring a machine is less than that of hiring. The annual expenditure on operation and maintenance of the machine i.e. tractor with a suction machine comes to around Rs 31 lakh, while the cost of tractor with the machine is Rs 17.50 lakh,” said an MC report. Keeping this in mind, the MC now proposes to purchase a leachate suction machine. A final call in this regard will be taken by the House.

The corporation had last November hired the machine for lifting and cleaning of leachate from manholes/road gullies at the dumping site and discharging the same at the STP. The tenure is set to expire on April 6.

During monsoon, the quantity of leachate increases manifold, causing inconvenience to Dadu Majra residents, as it flows into localities leading to foul smell.

Accordingly, the MC officials say there is a need to remove leachate using a suction machine and discharge it at the STP and at the Leachate Treatment Plant at the dumping ground for a period of one year.

Leachate also seeps on to the main road, causing accidents. There had been incidents of bikers skidding on the road near the dump. However, there had been some relief after a 15-foot boundary wall around the dumping ground and a treatment plant came up.