3 workers injured in blast at Ggm sewage treatment plant

Gurugram: Three workers were injured after there was a huge blast at the Dhanwapur Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) in Gurugram on Wednesday morning. Out of the three workers, the condition of one worker is said to be critical.

All the three workers are receiving treatment in Gurugram Government Hospital. The Dhanwapur (STP) is being managed by the Gurugram District Administration. According to the officials, the mishap occurred at around 10:00 am.

The impact of the blast was so huge that two big slabs of the Dhanwapur STP structure collapsed resulting in injuries to the workers. The cause of the blast is yet to be ascertained. The public officials have sent the samples to experts to find out the reasons for the blast. Sources in the Gurugram District Administration however claim the possibility of a chemical reaction in the tunnel where the blast occurred.

Being one of the few STPs, all of Gurugram's waste is being collected at the tunnel in the Dhanwapur sewage treatment plant where it is then subsequently recycled. The recycled water is then utilised by several public agencies in Gurugram for various purposes.

"We have sent the samples to experts to know the reasons for the blast. As of now, it seems that there was a chemical reaction in the tunnel where most of the sewage from urban Gurugram is collected before being recycled. We had just emptied the tunnel a few days ago," said a senior official from Gurugram District Administration.

The incident has again brought the problem of inadequate STP's in Gurugram. At present, there are two STPs operational in the city - one at Dhanwapur and another at Behrampur. With a lot of harmful sewage being released on the open areas the Gurugram District Administration has been directed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) to build more STP's in the city. The city currently generates a total of 430 MLD sewage and the total treatment capacity of the existing treatment plants is 383 MLD. To deal with the challenge the Gurugram District Administration has stated that works on Jahazgarh, Dhankot and Bajghera are in progress and are expected to be completed in the coming months.