GVMC plans to stop flow of sewage water into sea

VISAKHAPATNAM: Despite being a venue for several national and international events like the International Fleet Review, Independence Day parade and other international summits, a major stretch of RK Beach continues to act as a channel for sewage water from the city to flow into the sea.
However, with the state government mulling development of the port city as a top tourist destination in the country, tourism department officials have come up with several plans to revamp the beach at par with international standards.
The Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) authorities have already convened a series of meeting with the concerned officials followed by thorough inspection of the beach stretch in the last few weeks to understand the ground reality. The corporation has instructed AECOM, the US-based firm that has been entrusted with the Smart City project, to conduct a study on ways to prevent the flow of sewage into the sea.
When contacted, GVMC commissioner M Hari Narayanan said the major issue was sewerage water flowing directly into the sea through Uta Gedda that flows through Pandurangapuram, Harbour Park and All India Radio office and ends opposite the NTR Statue on Beach Road. “With the help of Visakhapatnam Port Trust, we have successfully constructed a storm water drain for Uta Gedda. The port trust contributed Rs 5 crore for the work. Now, under the Smart City programme, we are examining how to connect the drain to our sewerage treatment plant at Appu Ghar near Kailasagiri. The study is still going on and is likely to be submitted by AECOM representatives in a week,” Hari Narayanan told TOI.
Hari Narayanan said they are yet to estimate the cost of the project and will think about it only after receiving a study report regarding the linkage project.
“As RK Beach is a major tourism destination in the city, we decided to concentrate on revamping it with all possible efforts from our side. The linkage of Uta Gedda with the sewerage water treatment plant is a major project we plan to take up on a priority basis,” he added.