(a) the number of Sewage Treatment Plants(STPs) presently working in the country;
(b) whether the government has fixed any standards for STPs;
(c) if so, the number of STPs out of the above that meet the standards; and
(d) the steps proposed to be taken to improve the standards of the remaining STPs?
THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT AND FORESTS (SHRI NAMO NARAIN MEENA)
(a) to (c) As per a report of Central Pollution Control Board(CPCB, 2006), there are 231
Sewage Treatment Plants(STPs) presently working in Class-I cities, Class-II and other
smaller towns in the country. The notified effluent standards for STPs, for discharge
in surface water bodies are: Bio-chemical Oxygen Demand(BOD)-30 mg/l and Total Suspended
Solids-100 mg/l. Based on the performance evaluation of 115 STPs conducted by CPCB, 70
STPs were reported to achieve the standards for discharge in surface waters.
(d) The steps to improve the performance of the STPs include proper operation and
maintenance of plants, adequate resource mobilization by the States and availability
of dedicated power supply.