Punjab: Nearly 50 months after the foundation stone of Ludhiana’s sewage treatment plant (STP) was laid during the Congress regime in December 2020, the plant is yet to become operational. People living in low-lying areas were hoping that the facility would solve the long-standing problem of sewage overflowing, as work on installing the equipment costing Rs 8 crore was expedited after the appointment of Vikas Krishan Sharma as municipal council president six months ago. The civic body has been grappling with the challenge of clearing clogged sewers and managing flooding ever since the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government came to power in the state 35 months ago. The delay in the election of an AAP-backed regular president to the municipal council has worsened the situation.
As a result, people living in areas such as Green Avenue, Railway Road, Amarpura Mohalla, Dhulkot Road, Jawahar Nagar, Chand Cinema Road, Guru Nanak Pura, Gaushala Road and Ring Road are facing a mess, with sewage regularly flooding their areas. Earlier, the overflow problem was managed on a case-by-case basis by the sanitary department staff, but the crisis has escalated, requiring special teams to clear the blockages from pipelines and manholes. Despite assurances by former Congress MP Surjit Singh Dhiman and MP Dr Amar Singh Boparai that the STP will be completed within a year of its foundation stone laying, the facility is yet to be officially inaugurated. Additional Deputy Commissioner (D) Sukhpreet Singh Sidhu said the municipal council has been directed to coordinate with the sewerage department to expedite the completion of the STP.
