MCC takes inputs from Varanasi Corporation

Mysuru: Mysuru City Corporation (MCC), which once had won the “cleanest city” award and was the model for city corporations in governance, is all set to make preparations to convert waste into energy.
The city, which generates 600 to 700 metric tonnes of garbage daily, has initiated measures to prepare a project to produce torrefied charcoal from garbage waste on the lines of the work being done by Varanasi Nigam, local body of Uttar Pradesh.
The UP local body has implemented the project of converting its municipal waste into energy by adopting innovative technologies. A 36-member delegation of Mysuru officials, led by Mayor Shivakumar, had visited Varanasi to study the pros and cons of this technology.
Under the proposed project, a plant with a waste segregation capacity of 600-800 ton per day will be installed. This waste will be processed and fed into a reactor to produce torrefied charcoal. The torrefied charcoal, which is similar to natural coal, can be successfully blended with fuel in thermal power plants to produce electricity. The total process is environment-friendly as the temperature during the process is lower than other technologies, due to which there are no toxic emissions, said sources.
Speaking to TOI, Mayor Shivakumar said that Varanasi Nagar Nigam had set up this waste to energy plant after an agreement with NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam (NVVN) Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of NTPC Ltd, worth Rs 180 crore after providing 20 acres of land including to dispose of the waste generated during coal formation in five acres. As the Varanasi plant helps in mitigating environmental hazards caused by solid waste and keeping clean surroundings, he said that MCC is also mulling over setting up similar plants in the city.
“I will discuss the issue with other corporators and city corporation officials by convening a special meeting shortly to discuss the project issue,” he said.
MCC commissioner Lakshmikanth Reddy said that the MCC will make efforts to set up the plant which can generate revenue to the city civic body.