200 TPD cow dung still flowing into Buddha Nullah: MC

At least 200 tonnes per day (TPD) of cow dung was still flowing into the Buddha Nullah while passing through Ludhiana before it confluences with Sutlej and enters Rajasthan, the Municipal Corporation (MC) has admitted.

MC Chief Engineer (CE) Ravinder Garg disclosed this issue before the high-level joint group of experts and senior officers from both Centre and Punjab. The group was formed by the Centre for carrying out a time-bound action plan to clean and preserve the Sutlej tributary recently.

Submitting the action taken report on cow dung management at dairy complexes and scattered dairies, Garg said 200 TPD of cow dung was now being processed at existing CBG plant of the Haibowal dairy complex.

He added that proposed CBG plants at Tajpur Road and Haibowal dairy complexes would take time to become operational. As a temporary arrangements dedicated spaces were earmarked and provided near the dairy complexes. From there, this cow dung was being shifted to a private firm for manure processing. About 90-100 TPD of cow dung was being received at these sites, while some is being used by farmers or dairy owners.

He maintained that as such, less than 200 TPD of cow dung was now being dumped erroneously into the Buddha Nullah due to non-compliance by the dairy owners.

To punish violators, the MC has issued 170 challans in Haibowal and 202 in Tajpur dairy complex. However, a mechanism for the lifting of cow dung from scattered dairies located within the city limits is yet to be devised.

He further informed that as a permanent solution for lifting the cow dung from the dairies, the MC has floated a RFP for door-to-door collection, transportation and processing (vermin-composting) of cow dung from Haibowal and Tajpur dairy complexes.

Vishal Gandhi, Scientist ‘E’, Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) apprised the committee that warned that cow dung waste takes a long time to decompose naturally, and much of it reaches the Sutlej confluence at Walipur village. “Therefore, high BOD and COD is consistently observed even after the confluence point of Sutlej at Walipur despite the dilution being made by treated effluents from STP in Jamalpur and Balloke and CETPs,” he submitted.

The CPCB further observed that the disposal of cow dung in the Buddha Nallah was one of the major sources of pollution. It stressed that the measures taken by the MC should be expedited to completely manage the cow dung presently being discharged into Buddha Nallah.

Regarding the issue of cow dung being discharged into Buddha Nallah by dairies falling outside MC limits, the PEDA informed that presently there was no proposal of providing CBG plant for the dairies located outside the MC limits in the catchment area of Buddha Nullah.

Ranjit Singh Shergill, Executive Engineer for Department of Rural Development and Panchayats (DRDP), said so far no project proposal has been prepared by their department for the management of cow dung of dairies outside MC limits.

The committee observed that the DRDP was the custodian department and was responsible for the management of domestic or dairy waste being generated in the areas falling under their jurisdiction and should work out on the possibilities of processing of cow dung to some useful product or activity so as to stop its illegal discharge into Buddha Nullah.

Further, the GLADA official informed the panel that there was no proposal for shifting of these dairies to some dairy cluster. He further informed that as per their policy, the dairy units were not required to obtain change of land use. However, they have issued notices to the illegally established dairies.

The committee observed that GLADA must take regulatory actions as prescribed under their acts and rules against such defaulters.