NTPC's Sipat plant gets warning over use of fly ash

Only 22% of 14,000 MT of fly ash generated a day is used; unit faces closure if this isn't hiked

The Chhattisgarh Environment Department today warned the National Thermal Power Corporation Ltd (NTPC) that operations of its power plant in Sipat would be stopped, if it does not use the fly ash generated there as per the rules, officials said today.

Secretary of Chhattisgarh Housing and Environment Department and member of state Environment Conservation Board, Sanjay Shukla, held a meeting with the officials of NTPC, Sipat.

During the meet, he told the NTPC officials that if the plant does not use the flash ash generated there as per the 2009 notification, then its operations would be stopped.

During the meeting, which was also attended by Bilaspur District Collector Anbalagan P and Superintendent of Police (SP), Mayank Shrivastav, Shukla expressed displeasure over the plant's non-compliance of the notification.

At present, 14,000 metric tonnes of fly ash is generated at the NTPC plant every day, of which only 22 per cent is being used, mainly in cement factories and brick-making.

Officials said the NTPC has been ordered to make use of the fly ash in the construction of Raipur-Bilaspur National Highway, roads constructed under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), bridges and other infrastructure projects of the government.

NTPC officials assured that 70,000 metric tonnes of fly ash would be used in the construction of the Raipur- Bilaspur National Highway.