Nema A - 226
Nema A - 226
Nema A - 226
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Nema, Asit. 2019. “Simplified Sewerage: An Appropriate Option for Rapid Coverage in Peri-urban Areas of
India”. figshare. https://hdl.handle.net/2134/29287.
NEMA
With increasing population pressure in the cities and towns across India, clearing the backlog, and
improving and maintaining sanitation service levels has become increasingly challenging. Water borne
human excreta disposal through conventional sewerage system is expensive and increasingly infeasible
for congested, small plot habitations which experience low or declining service levels of water supply.
Although this represents the higher order technology option, it is increasingly being questioned because
of its water intensive feature. In areas where onsite sanitation is technically not feasible and where
conventional sewerage is financially unaffordable, simplified sewerage as an intermediate technology
solution offers an appropriate option. Successful experience of over 20 years in Latin American
countries has positioned this technology as an important and only feasible option for periurban areas
and low income settlements. A small municipality of Ramagundam (Andhra Pradesh, India) with a
population of around 250,000 has successfully adopted this technology and has been able to provide full
sanitation in 13 low and middleincome communities covering over 6600 households. Lessons from this
success story could be drawn for wider application and rapid coverage under the ongoing infrastructure
strengthening programs. There is a need to evolve appropriate policy and technical guidelines such that
the sanitary engineering community can confidently adopt this unconventional technology and extend
the benefits of improved sanitary conditions and better public health to a larger population.
Introduction
There are over 4300 cities and towns in India wherein a thriving population of over 285 million resides. This
section of the population is estimated to contribute over 60% of the Country’s GDP. This urban population
had recorded a growth of 31% during the 19912001 decade and is expected to be growing at an even
higher rate in the present and the coming decades given the increasing impetus on industrialisation and
urbanisation. In 1991 there were 24 ‘million plus’ cities which rose to 35 by 2001.
As per the Census 2001, about 53% of the urban population had access to improved sanitation while the
World Health Survey of 2002 estimated it to be around 62% (WHO/UNICEF, 2004). To address the wide
gap, the Tenth Five Year Plan (200207) had kept the target of raising coverage in urban areas by 200607 to
75% which corresponds to reaching to an additional 31 million people and for which a budgetary estimate of
Rs. 231.57 billion (~USD 4.8 billion, @ Rs. 48/USD in 2002)1 was made (Planning Commission, 2002). In
the Eleventh Five Year Plan (20072012) the coverage target has been raised to 100% which requires
reaching to 198 million urban population by 2012, and out of which 138.8 million (70%) population is
proposed to be served with sewerage connection. For the latter component the fund requirement in the
Eleventh Plan is estimated to be Rs. 416.34 billion (~USD 9.7 billion, @ Rs. 43/USD in 2007) (MOUD,
2006). If India is to meet the Millennium Development Goal on sanitation then at least 92.5 million urban
population has to be covered by year 2015, and in order to achieve the global goal of full sanitation coverage
by 2025, then additional 240 million people have to be covered (Planning Commission, 2002).
NEMA
While access to household toilets in urban areas could be increasing, sanitation beyond home toilets is a
different story. The Census 2001 and the World Health Survey, 2002 estimated sewer connectivity as low as
1517%. Out of 423 ClassI cities, only about 70 have partial sewerage network, while the rest of the Class
I, II and III cities and towns do not have this increasingly critical public health engineering infrastructure.
Under such situation, typically septic tank is the preferred option but which in most cases is not followed by
a soakaway/drainage trench, and as a result its overflow is let out either on the ground, into open storm
water channels or drains. This, along with the practice of indiscriminate disposal of septage from filled
septic tanks leads to release of pathogens into the open environment which poses a major risk to public
health (municipal service for emptying of filled septic tanks is commonly not available; local bylaws for safe
disposal of septage are not clearly laid out or implemented effectively and as a result, septage is disposed of
into water bodies or on to agriculture fields). Often lack of space for construction of septic tanks and non
availability of sewer lines compels low income households to construct direct discharge latrines or to resort
to the unhealthy practice of open defecation. In the case of relatively larger villages (population > 5,000)
which are rapidly acquiring semiurban characteristics, similar or still challenging situation prevails.
Further, as per the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) estimates for year 200304, over 26,054
million litres/day (mld) of sewage is generated in 921 ClassI & II cities and towns across the country and
the aggregate available capacity for treatment is only 7,044 mld (MoUD, 2006). In view of this wide gap
(effective operational capacity may be still less), 19,210 mld untreated sewage is discharged into water
bodies and which inturn leads to the associated adverse environmental and public health impacts.
In recent years the Government of India has initiated two very comprehensive urban infrastructure
strengthening programmes, viz. Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) and Urban
Infrastructure Development Scheme for Small and Medium Towns (UIDSSMT) with a tentative outlay of
Rs. 1000 billion (~USD 22.5 billion, @ Rs. 44.5/USD in 2006) which are coterminating with the Eleventh
Five Year Plan by 2012. Under these programmes, among others, construction of on and offsite sanitation
infrastructure is one of the key components (accounting for almost 40% of the outlay) and it is understood
that several large, medium and small municipalities are planning or have already started construction of
conventional sewerage system. It is also noted that for its perceived benefits, municipal councillors and
officials increasingly prefer water borne excreta disposal system. While sewerage network represents a
higher order technology option and which can enable significant improvement in sanitary conditions in a
habitation, one of the preconditions for its satisfactory working is adequate water supply. However, with
several urban areas being characterised by restricted water supply and declining service levels, it would be a
challenge to ensure trouble free operation of a conventional sewerage system. It is also recognised that there
are several challenges in its construction in congested areas, low income settlements, and even in new
layouts in the suburbs because of high capital cost, space constraints, higher gradient requirements,
subsidence, etc. Moreover, where topography is unfavourable, sewage pumping stations are unavoidable and
it has been observed that municipalities find it difficult to sustain their operation because of high energy
costs.
conventional sewerage. Further, experience in Brazil has shown that simplified sewerage is cheaper than on
site sanitation in areas with population density higher than 175 persons/ha.
Maintenance requirements of such a system comprise occasional flushing of sewer lines, removal of
blockages through rodding machines or flushing equipment, repairs of sewer lines and connection chambers,
as needed, manual inspection, and desludging of interceptor/septic tanks once every 5 years or so.
One of the essential and desirable aspects of developing a simplified sewerage project is the need for
community participation in its planning, construction and O&M. For instance while interceptor tanks are
essential, further cost reduction is possible on users’ end by sharing of the interceptor tank by a group of
houses before connecting to the network. The users also need to ensure that no large objects are disposed
into the toilets and the tanks are emptied when full.
Simplified sewerage system has been found to be reliable, upgradeable and extendable. It is applicable in
all situations but especially suitable for areas characterized by gently sloping topography, high and low
density population with reasonable water supply, small homesteads with lack of space, high water table,
impervious soil and shallow bedrock. Variation occurs in rolling terrain where need for intermediate
pumping may arise, however generally one or two lifts may be all that would be required. In Orangi slum
settlement of Karachi, Pakistan, over the years the community with support from facilitating organisations is
reported to have developed a wide network covering over 600,000 poor people and has been able to bring
about significant sanitation improvements. In Brazil initially this system was provided in low income
habitations, however, it is now successfully and appropriately used for low density middle and highincome
neighbourhoods as well.
Another advantage of this system is that it enables decentralised treatment of sewage in the form of either
a low cost community septic tank followed by a wetland or somewhat higher order treatment option
according to the applicable discharge standards. In this regard, it is to be recognised that on account of
individual interceptor tanks, settled sewage also requires lesser degree of treatment.
Indian experience
The latest available edition of the Manual on Sewerage and Sewage Treatment of the Central Public Health
and Environmental Engineering Organisation (CPHEEO), Ministry of Urban Development introduces
‘small bore’ and ‘shallow sewerage’ as appropriate technology options (CPHEEO, 1995) however as yet
they have not been adopted by consulting organisations, municipal engineers and urban local bodies.
Apparently lack of local references, design expertise and experience in O&M can be attributed to hitherto
low acceptance of these options.
However, a small beginning has been made during last 5 years under the Department for International
Development, UK (DFID) supported project ‘Andhra Pradesh Urban Services for the Poor’ at Ramagundam
(Census2001 population 247,751) in Karimnagar district of Andhra Pradesh2. To start with, the
municipality identified a resettlement colony of 300 lowermiddle income families for a pilot project
wherein each family agreed to construct an individual household latrine at its own cost and contribute
towards 40% cost of sewer network. Each house connection includes a raised chamber at the front of a
property. The sewers are of 150 mm diameter and are laid rather shallow, with invert between 150200 mm
below ground (Photographs 1&2). The combined sewage from 300 houses is discharged into a common
large septic tank which subsequently overflows into a storm water drain. Although there are no individual
interception tanks on any of the properties, the pipes are not laid perfectly and the treatment is not complete,
the system can be characterized as ‘shallow sewerage’ or a variant of ‘simplified’ sewer system. It has
resulted in significant behaviour change with preference towards fixed point defecation among the
beneficiaries and improvement in environmental sanitation within the community. In 200304 the project
cost was Rs. 0.75 million (~USD 15,790, @ Rs. 47.5/USD in 2003) wherein each family contributed
Rs. 1000/ (~USD 21) towards community contribution and the balance was paid by the municipality.
Drawing from this successful initiative, in subsequent years Ramagundam Municipality has by now
provided total sanitation coverage in 13 middle and low income colonies benefiting around 6600 families
with incrementally improved design and construction specifications and the average cost of construction is
found to be Rs. 1100/ per person (~USD 23.2). This is found to be one third of the going estimate of
Rs. 3000/ per person (~63.2 USD) for the conventional sewerage system. An interesting aspect under the
whole programme has been provision of cement concrete pavements along with the simplified sewerage
systems which together have led to significant improvement in the quality of life of the beneficiary
communities.
NEMA
These simplified sewerage networks are found to be working well and the community is satisfied with the
level of service. The municipality is responsible for repairs and maintenance aspects while the community
extends necessary support in terms of timely reporting of any blockages and sharing of minor costs. In due
course the municipality plans to collect overflows from community septic tanks, which are currently
discharged into open drains, and divert them to one of the two existing sewage treatment plants (which are
based on waste stabilisation pond technology) which were constructed under a separate centrally sponsored
programme. However it has yet to overcome several challenges, mainly resource constraints, before the
overflows could be fully intercepted and the treatment plants could be commissioned satisfactorily.
Conclusion
Based on the experience from Brazil and several other Latin American countries, simplified sewerage has
been recognised as an important, appropriate and affordable offsite sanitation technology option in peri
urban areas, high density slums, squatter settlements and comparatively larger rural areas of developing
countries. It is recognised as the only technically feasible solution in areas characterised by high population
density, small plots, relatively reasonable water supply levels, adverse groundwater and soil conditions, and
has been successfully implemented even in affluent areas as well. However, this sanitation technology has
not received due recognition and acceptance within Indian sanitary engineering community. Limited
experience from Ramagundam in Andhra Pradesh shows that this is a feasible and acceptable solution in the
Indian context as well which enables significant improvements in sanitation conditions with substantial
reduction in costs and time of construction. The current impetus on urban infrastructure strengthening under
the JNNURM and UIDSSMT programs of the Ministry of Urban Development and on sanitation in rural
areas (with reference to villages with population > 5000) under the Total Sanitation Campaign of the
Ministry of Rural Development offers an opportunity to adopt this technology for wider and rapid coverage
of unserved and underserved population. There is a need to evolve appropriate policy and technical
guidelines so that the sanitary engineering community, the consultant fraternity, the urban local bodies and
the state public health engineering departments can develop confidence on this option and start offering as a
‘standard solution’ for not only low income areas but high income areas alike. A few more success stories
within the country will lay the ground for its wide scale adoption and thereby bring the country closure to
meeting the Millennium Development Goals and the global goal of full sanitation.
NEMA
References
CPHEEO (1995) Manual on Sewerage and Sewage Treatment (Second Edition). Ministry of Urban
Development, Govt. of India: New Delhi.
Mara, D. Sleigh, A. and Tayler, K. (2001) PC based simplified sewer design. School of Civil
Engineering, University of Leeds, England.
Ministry of Urban Development, Govt. of India (2006). Report of the Working Group on urban
development (excluding urban transport), urban water supply and sanitation (including low cost
sanitation, sewerage and solid waste management) and urban environment for the Eleventh Five Year
Plan (20072012). MOUD: New Delhi.
Planning Commission, Govt. of India (2002). India Assessment 2002: Water supply and sanitation, a
WHOUNICEF sponsored study. Planning Commission: New Delhi.
WHO/UNICEF (2004). Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation: Coverage
Estimates Improved Sanitation – India. Wssinfo.org.
Keywords
Simplified sewerage, offsite sanitation, India.
Contact details
Asit Nema
Foundation for Greentech Environmental Systems
D208, Sarita Vihar, New Delhi, India
Tel: +91 11 4054 0977/4105 4084
Fax: + 91 11 2697 4941
Email: asitnema@gmail.com
www: greenensys.org
End notes
1
Exchange rates for various years have been taken from www.exchangerate.com.
2
The author has been involved in preparation of strategic sanitation and solid waste management plans
for Ramagundam and four other small municipalities in Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra on behalf of the
Water and Sanitation Program – South Asia of the World Bank during 200608. The information
presented here is based on first hand data and personal visits to the sites.