A special purpose vehicle (SPV) is likely to be formed as part of setting up a sewage treatment plant to rejuvenate the heavily polluted Kuzhikandam stream in Eloor.
The project will come up at nearly 75 cents under Hindustan Insecticides Limited in Eloor after the Center agreed to provide land for implementing the much-delayed project.
The creek was among 12 toxic landfill sites in the country identified in 2011 by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change for remediation under the National Clean Energy Fund (NCEF) programme.
The site was included in the national program after an investigation by the Central Pollution Control Board revealed huge deposits of heavy metals and persistent organic pollutants in the stream. The investigation also revealed that 24.5 hectares of land and water bodies at four locations in Eloor were contaminated with pesticides and heavy metals.
Board officials pointed out that part of the funding needed to be clarified as funding under the NCEF ran out after the Center shelved the scheme. The government had earlier decided that 60% of the total estimate must be shared between polluting industries on a polluter-pays basis and the state government, while the Center would provide the remaining 40%. The government will also have to take a call on the dues incurred by industrial units along the Eloor-Edayar stretch responsible for the pollution of Periyar towards the cost of remediation, they said.
The facility will be established on the basis of a detailed project report to be finalized by the SPV. A timetable will be drawn up for the preparation and approval of the tender documentation and the tendering process for the assignment of the work in the time schedule.
Published – 02 Jan 2026 01:05 IST
