Coimbatore's Major Underground Drainage Project Inaugurated by Chief Minister M K Stalin
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin officially inaugurated the Kurichi-Kuniyamuthur underground drainage (UGD) project in Coimbatore on Thursday through a videoconferencing ceremony. This significant infrastructure development, completed under the central government's Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) scheme, represents a substantial investment of Rs 597.14 crore aimed at transforming the city's sanitation and wastewater management systems.
Project Scope and Demographic Planning
The comprehensive UGD project encompasses 14 wards (87 to 100) within Coimbatore Corporation's south zone, designed to provide essential drainage services to 69,688 house service connections. Engineered with forward-looking urban planning, the project has been meticulously designed to accommodate population growth over a 30-year period from 2020.
Projections indicate that by 2035, the system will manage wastewater from an estimated population of 3.92 lakh people, with a calculated wastewater volume of 40.26 million litres per day (MLD). Looking further ahead to 2050, the infrastructure is designed to handle 53.07 MLD of wastewater from an anticipated population of 5.17 lakh residents in the service area.
Project Timeline and Implementation Challenges
The project's journey began with an initial administrative sanction of Rs 449 crores in October 2017, followed by a revised sanction of Rs 591.14 crores in February 2019. Physical implementation commenced in 2018 with sewer pipeline laying, followed by the establishment of a dedicated sewage treatment plant (STP) at the Vellalore dumpyard in 2019.
While the contract stipulated completion by December 2023, the project faced several implementation challenges that caused delays. A particularly significant bottleneck involved navigating a major railway crossing at Podanur, which required careful coordination and engineering solutions to overcome.
Infrastructure Details and Current Status
According to senior corporation officials, the project has achieved substantial physical progress:
- 390.19 kilometers of sewer pipelines have been successfully laid
- Approximately 16,200 machine holes have been installed throughout the network
- The system has been strategically divided into 13 sewerage zones for efficient management
- 19 lift stations and 11 pumping stations have been established to facilitate wastewater movement
- Over 40,000 house service connections have already been provided to residents
The collected sewage from pumping stations will be conveyed to the Vellalore STP, which has been constructed with a capacity to handle 30.5 MLD using the advanced sequential batch reactors method of treatment. This technology ensures efficient and environmentally responsible wastewater processing.
Urban Restoration and Community Impact
An important aspect of the project's implementation has been the restoration of urban infrastructure. The corporation reports that approximately 330 kilometers of roads that were excavated for pipeline installation have been meticulously restored and relaid, minimizing long-term disruption to the city's transportation network.
This ambitious underground drainage project represents a transformative investment in Coimbatore's urban infrastructure, promising improved sanitation, environmental protection, and enhanced quality of life for residents in the southern zones of the city for decades to come.
