SDMC to get second waste-to-energy plant soon.

South Delhi may soon get its second waste-to-energy plant that would significantly reduce the amount of garbage that has collected at the Okhla landfill over the years.

The South Delhi Municipal Corporation has begun the process of approving the project, with the Standing Committee recently giving a nod to the 15 megawatt (MW) plant to be set up at Tekhand.

The House is expected to pass the plan at a meeting on Monday, as per officials.

According to the plan, the SDMC would set up a waste-to-energy plant that would 1,200 tonnes per day (TPD) of garbage to produce 15MW of electricity.

Standing Committee chairperson Shailender Singh said the SDMC was likely to be given 14.2 acres of land that is currently used by the Cement Corporation of India as well as another plot of 35.33 acres that is vacant for the project.

He added that the Centre had instructed the Delhi Development Authority and other stakeholders to transfer the land to the SDMC.

The SDMC already has a waste-to-energy plant at Okhla-Timarpur that has the capacity of 1,950 TPD.

That leaves the SDMC with about 1,600 TPD of unprocessed waste, Mr. Singh said.

Taking into account new schemes for segregation at source and secondary collection of garbage, Mr. Singh said the amount of unprocessed garbage would decrease.

The additional processing capacity of 1,200 TPD at the Tekhand plant would really reduce the mountain of trash at the landfill, said Commissioner Puneet Kumar Goel.

The Okhla landfill, which was started in 1996 and is spread over 32 acres, gets about 1,800 TPD of garbage. So far, 60 lakh tonnes of garbage has collected at the site, which has risen to 160 feet in height against the permissible limit of 90 feet, said the Commissioner.

The Tekhand plant, which will cost ₹351.10 crore, would be financed as per the private-public-partnership model. The Union Urban Development Ministry would contribute ₹122.88 crore under the Swachh Bharat Mission and the Power Ministry would give ₹52.66 crore, said Mr. Goel.

The SDMC would have to bring in ₹175.46 crore, but is also expected to earn ₹57.81 crore by selling power every year.

THE HINDU