Only 40 FSSM plants functional out of 58 in UP: CSE

NEW DELHI: On Thursday, September 5, a high-level meeting, consisting of the Department of Urban Development, Government of Uttar Pradesh, and the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), was held in New Delhi. In the meeting, sustainable sanitation and lake management were discussed. In the meeting, CSE observed that though Uttar Pradesh has ramped up Faecal Sludge and Septage Management (FSSM) facilities, keeping these facilities active has remained a hurdle for the Department of Urban Development.

In the past years, Uttar Pradesh has constructed 58 FSSM plants. However, only 40 of these plants are currently functioning; the remaining 18 are at various stages of development. In the functionality assessment made by the CSE in about 20 cities, including Lucknow, it was found that they were not able to capitalise on the opportunity they had. The report, revealed in the meeting, noted, “The capacity utilisation in most of these cities ranged between a mere 0-5%.”

CSE revealed three reports on this occasion: ‘Septage Management in Uttar Pradesh-Scaling Up and Sustainability Lessons’, ‘Infusing New Life: Gaps and Challenges in Managing Lakes and Ponds and Groundwater in Four Selected AMRUT Cities of Uttar Pradesh’, and ‘Monitoring and Evaluation of FSTPs and STP Co-treatment Plants in Uttar Pradesh’.

The first report focusses on the transformative changes made by the state government in the FSSM landscape. The second report observed the lake management issues in the urban areas of Uttar Pradesh. The third report looked into the efficiency of 13 faecal sludge and septage treatment plants.