The ₹1,927 Crore Wait: Nag River Project Hits Land Block

The ₹1,927 crore Nag River Pollution Abatement Project in Nagpur is yet to witness major on-ground work, prompting the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) to seek approval for a land-use change to build a sewage treatment plant (STP) at Nari.

The civic body recently submitted a proposal to the Urban Development Department in Mumbai under Section 37 of the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act. It has requested permission to convert a portion of land reserved for a public park in North Nagpur to construct a 45 million litres per day (MLD) sewage treatment plant along the bank of the Pili River, a key tributary of the Nag River. The plant is intended to intercept untreated sewage flowing into the river and divert it to treatment facilities before discharge.

The river rejuvenation initiative is considered a major project supported by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari. However, land acquisition challenges have slowed progress, as the proposed 3.22-hectare site involves 22 landowners, including several government agencies.

Earlier proposals to construct treatment plants at Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology and Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth could not move forward due to land constraints.

News by Rahul Yelligetti.