Chandigarh’s C&D waste treatment plant resumes operations

Chandigarh’s lone construction and demolition (C&D) waste treatment plant has resumed operations in the Industrial Area Phase I on a single work-shift basis. However, there is no fresh material to recycle since all construction is at a halt. The plant has a huge amount of material from the pre-lockdown days and is now processing this pile. A Municipal Corporation official informed The Times of India, “Earlier, we received 200 tonnes of C&D waste a day, but now we struggle to get even 100 tonnes. Besides different divisions, the other material source is the Dadumajra landfill. The first task is to clear the previous pile from the plant.”

After processing the raw material, the machines produce recycle aggregates such as stones, gravel, and a mix of debris to make concrete and related material. The recycled concrete goes into making tiles, curb channels, and paver blocks, which the MC uses in different works. Silt, which is one of the byproducts, is used in filling jobs on the construction sites. Recently, Chandigarh MC’s C&D waste treatment plant was selected as a model unit in the country.

Picture Credit: Raakesh Blokhra, Open Hand monument, Chandigarh, CC BY-SA 2.0