Ujjain: District administration is spending sleepless nights to ensure that Kshipra remains pollution free. It has gone in an overdrive to prevent mixing of contaminated Kanh water in Kshipra.
In January 2019, the then divisional commissioner (MB Ojha) and district collector (Manish Singh) were shunted out by the Nath government after administration failed to ensure clean and sufficient water at Triveni Sangam (confluence point of four rivers) at Triveni Ghat during Shanischari Amavasya.
During December 12 Magh Purnima Snan, the administration ended up with egg on its face. In wake of polluted Kshipra, the administration had to arrange shower bath at Ram Ghat on the day. BJP immediately pounced on the issue and its MLAs have listed several questions for the Winter Session of the Assembly in this regard.
Ujjain collector Shashank Mishra visited Indore-based sewage treatment plant (STP) in Kabeetkhedi village. He was informed that 350 MLD water is accumulated in Indore and about 78 MLD is released in Kanh without treatment. He was informed that untreated water would not be released in Kanh next week. He instructed officials to take sample of Kahn water at Sanver and Triveni confluence.
Perturbed over the Kanh affair, particularly at Indore, Mishra shot off a letter to his Indore counterpart Lokesh Jatav stating that STP was releasing contaminated Kanh water in Kshipra. “This forced us to ensure festival bath of December 12 through other water sources,” he wrote. He further said that two more festival baths are scheduled for near future including December 26 (due to solar eclipse) and on January 14 (Makar Sankranti).
“Huge number of devotees will take a dip in Kshipra. Purity of water can be maintained only after releasing cent-per-cent treated water from Kabeetkhedi STP,” Mishra wrote.
He further said that during a meeting on December 16 at Ujjain under the chairmanship of divisional commissioner, Indore Municipal Corporation’s PHED executive engineer had promised to do needful, but still Kanh water released in Kshipra had bad odour and black colour. “It appears that the work at STP is not satisfactory,” he added. Collector has also sought cooperation from his Indore counterpart to ensure that contaminated water of factories is stopped from mixing in Kanh by asking owners concerned to install water purifier plants.
