THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state government has allotted Rs 984 crore for public sanitation projects under Rebuild Kerala Initiative. It includes setting up of bioparks, centralised and decentralised waste treatment projects, sewage treatment plants (STPs), waste collection centres, recycling units and strengthening of institutions involved in the process. A majority of the fund would be utilised for decentralised effluent treatment plants (ETPs). As much as Rs 362 crore has been earmarked for it while biopark construction is slated to receive Rs 245 crore.
Urban areas are to receive 34 STPs while those in rural areas get 44. Only 20 per cent of toilets in urban areas are connected to sewerage system even though most areas are marked open defecation-free. At present, there is no mechanism in place to scientifically treat septage in rural areas. Close to 95,150 toilets were destroyed in floods, affecting the lives of four lakh people. The toilets could not be used as septic tanks and leach pits were destroyed.