A special purpose vehicle has been formed to appoint a concessionaire for the Adyar river restoration project through public private partnership mode. Bids have been invited to choose a concessionaire who would design the project and also carry out restoration efforts.
It may be recalled that the State government had announced earlier this year about a ₹1,500-crore proposal to restore the 44-km Adyar river to realise the objective of Singara Chennai project. Several initiatives are already under progress to rejuvenate the river by various agencies, including the Water Resources Department. However, the river continues to be vulnerable to sewage pollution and dumping of garbage particularly in the city fringes.
The proposed project aimed at comprehensive restoration wherein concessionaire would be responsible for operation and management of the projects under the ‘One River, One Operator’ model. Chennai Metrowater would lead the SPV comprising various government agencies and initiate measures to form a new company as authority SPV that would act as the project’s nodal agency.
Sources said the project would be executed under hybrid annuity model wherein government would contribute 40% of the project cost during the project period and the remaining would be made throughout the operations period.
The concessionaire would have to implement various projects for eco-restoration of the river, operate the infrastructure to abate pollution and also sustain the river ecology. The SPV would be responsible to transfer the rights to use and operate the existing assets, including sewage treatment plants and pumping stations, to allow smooth and effective implementation of the project, sources said.
The project would include several aspects for preserving the ecological health of the river, improvements to the waterway and waterfront development works. Focus would be more on river cleaning, preventing sewage flow and establishing network of sewage treatment facilities apart from recreational facilities.
At present, the Water Resources Department has made progress in desilting and widening various stretches of the river and is also engaged in clearing encroachments in phases. Other government agencies like Metrowater and Greater Chennai Corporation are engaged in strengthening sewage treatment network and river beautification works.