Tech promotion centre to help in waste treatment

The Andhra Pradesh Technology Development and Promotion Centre (APTDC) has been selected as a consultant for establishing waste treatment facilities in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Chandigarh.

Besides, it will be working as a turnkey contractor for similar projects in Kerala.

More than 50 million tonnes of municipal solid waste is generated daily in urban areas of the country, and landfill sites for disposing such waste are exhausting.

Besides, open dumping can cause a lot of health hazards and environment deterioration. "However, the solid waste can be processed to produce compost and energy," K Subodh Kumar, head of APTDC, told Business Standard.

APTDC has been established under the joint initiative of the government of Andhra Pradesh, the Confederation of Indian Industry, and Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (Tifac).

The centre has already assisted some companies in Andhra Pradesh to set up two garbage-to-fuel plants and will be involved in five others with a total capacity of 3,000 tonnes per day (TPD).

For instance, it assisted in the setting up of a 700 TPD municipal solid waste processing plant in Hyderabad. The fuel generated is being used for a 6.6-Mw power plant.

In Bangalore, Srinivasa Gayatri Resource Recovery Ltd is setting up a Rs 70-crore waste-to-power facility. APTDC will be providing consultancy services for the waste-to-fuel portion.

"It's a 1,500-TPD project but will start with 1,000 tonnes capacity," S Jyoti Kumar, counsellor (technology), APTDC, said. In Chandigarh, APTDC is working with Jayaprakash Associates for a Rs 10-crore 350 TPD project. On turnkey basis, it is involved in two projects in Kerala (Kochi - 250 TPD, Alappuzha - 50 TPD).

APTDC is the exclusive agency in India responsible for the promotion and implementation of refuse derived fuel technology founded by Tifac.

It has also partnered with the Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services, wherein it is creating a special purpose vehicle for around 10 municipal waste treatment projects across Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Delhi.