Parthiepan seeks to irradiate sludge

Chennai: It could well be one of the toughest roles he has essayed yet, but actor R. Parthiepan is game for it. The 57-year-old film veteran could be the key in Tamil Nadu government deciding to irradiate sludge dredged out of Adyar and Cooum riverbeds, in a bid to remove pathogens and convert the silt into bio-fertiliser. In a preliminary meeting at Chennai corporation on Saturday, a presentation by Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (Barc) representatives is said to have been well-received. Taking it forward, corporation sources told DC that Ripon Buildings will host a multi-departmental meeting on Monday.

The technology to convert sludge is already operational in Gujarat. In Gajrawadi town of Vadodara, Barc, has assisted in setting up a Sludge Hygienisation Research Irradiator (SHRI) plant. "In Chennai, the proposal will be for a dry sludge hygienisation plant. A similar plant is already coming up in Ahmedabad while Nagpur has also shown interest and is on the verge of signing an MoU," said J Daniel Chellappa, Barc's senior scientist (technical coordination wing).

The basic function of the plant will be to employ gamma radiation for treatment of sludge. A radiation dose of three kilogray from a Cobalt-60 source on the sludge will ensure removal of 99.99 per cent of pathogens, Chellappa said.

"To set up a 150 MLD capacity plan, the state will have to invest around Rs 10-15 crore. The cost of processing one kg of sludge comes to 90 paisa to one rupee," he explained.
 For Parthiepan, however, it has been a one-man battle, as the actor puts it. "It has not been easy. But I have been behind the Chennai corporation like a teenage lover who is after the girl of his fantasy. The response from the corporation too has been like a girl, who is not short of options," he said.

When asked to comment, a senior official of the corporation said the "suitability of the technology" was still doubtful.

‘Want to distribute processed sludge free of cost to farmers'

Actor R. Parthiepan wants to distribute sludge processed into manure free of cost to farmers and he wants to start doing so from his hometown in Cheyyur. The film industry veteran said Cooum restoration project was close to his heart and that he has already made arrangements for 200 lorries to transport the sludge. "I recently bought a piece of land in my native Kadapakkam in Cheyyur. When I moved here, I realised that farmers here were buying manure for Rs 50/60 per kg," he said.

"Converting Adyar and Cooum's sludge into manure was just an idea which came to me after pondering for a while. I want to ensure that farmers are supplied this manure free of cost," he added.