Badlapur MIDC chemical sewage line bursts again, effluent flows into Ulhas river

The chemical sewage line of the Badlapur MIDC has burst once again. The line carries chemical effluent from the Badlapur MIDC to Ambernath. When it burst on Monday, a large quantity of chemical effluent spread across the road and flowed into a drain.

It did not stop there. The same effluent also entered the water tanks of several buildings. Through the drain, it reached the Ulhas river and mixed with the river water, causing large-scale water pollution. Sambhaji Shinde, chairman of the planning and development committee of the Kulgaon-Badlapur Municipal Council, expressed sharp anger over the incident. Shinde is also a BJP councillor.

Shinde questioned the negligence of the MIDC administration. He fears it could lead to a public health problem. He also warned that a major public agitation would be launched if this happened again. He has also demanded an independent inquiry into the work on the chemical sewage line.

In Badlapur, the MIDC line has been bursting at intervals of a few months for the past several years. Sambhaji Shinde had raised the issue repeatedly. The MIDC administration then assured that a new sewage line would be laid. A new chemical sewage line was accordingly laid, at a cost of about Rs 128 crore. It was hoped that the line bursts would now end, but on Monday the line burst again and chemical effluent came onto the road.

According to Shinde, when the new line was planned he had demanded that a stainless steel line be laid. But the MIDC administration laid an HDPE line, and that same line has now burst. He said the sewage line has burst even after about Rs 128 crore was spent.

Despite such large expenditure, the line keeps bursting. This has raised questions about the quality of the work, the material used and the technical planning. Sambhaji Shinde has demanded an independent inquiry into all three.