BHUBANESWAR: The Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) is taking steps to operationalise the mega material recovery facility (MRF) at Palasuni by June-end.
A senior official of the corporation’s sanitation wing said this is being done as the civic body is finding it difficult to process the large volume of solid waste at the Gadakana temporary transit centre (TTS). “The material recovery facility on around 10 acre land will be able to process 150 tonne of dry waste in a single shift per day,” he added.
The official further informed that of the 810 tonne waste generated in the city every day, around 400 tonne is dry waste. About 110 tonne of this waste is being processed at 22 small MRFs set up in different parts of the city.
“Once the 150 tonne plant is readied, the remaining 290 tonne waste, a majority of which is being processed at the Gadakana TTS at present, will be diverted to it where it will be processed in two shifts every day,” he added.
The civic body had planned to set up the mega wealth centre at Palasuni to meet the deadline of May, 2023 fixed for stopping the transport of solid waste to Bhuasuni dump yard from the temporary transit station near Sainik School. Accordingly, it had obtained approval from the Housing and Urban Development department to come up with the project on a 10 acre land in Palasuni. The civic body had also received NOC from the Water Corporation of Odisha (WATCO) to utilise the land for the wealth centre. However, it failed to execute the project on time, owing to issues pertaining to its construction.
The delay mounted pressure on the TTS near Sainik school after the garbage dumping in Bhuasuni stopped in May 2023. The BMC official said the wealth centre is being set up using advanced technology to check foul smell. “We are planning to make it functional by June-end this year. Once operationalised, the MRF will significantly reduce waste processing burden at the Gadakana TTS,” he said.