New Delhi (NVI): Indian Railways’ biggest effluent treatment facility in the country was recently commissioned as a big step towards reducing its water consumption.
Western Railways has started using treated effluent water from its new plant at the coaching depot in Bandra Terminus for non-potable purposes such as cleaning toilets, platform lines and coaches.
Though it is not yet operating at full capacity, when it starts doing so, the plant will filter and clean one million litres of waste water per day. The move will result in decrease in the use of fresh water that WR buys from municipal authorities.
This is a welcome news in a city like Mumbai, where every drop is precious, as this one of a kind plant will help save millions of litres of water.
The plant has the potential to cut WR’s water bill by Rs 1.9 crore per annum, which is more than its operational cost. The operational cost aggregate stands at Rs 23,000 per day, or Rs 84 lakh per annum, including labour, electricity and other charges, according to officials of the Railway Ministry.
The plant is close to an overhead tank with a capacity of 2.25 lakh litres. A specially laid pipeline – made of anti-bacterial and anti-corrosive substances, which makes it well suited to Mumbai’s climate – takes the treated water to the tank.
This unique initiative will go a long way towards addressing not only water scarcity, but also environmental and ecological issues.
