Patna: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to inaugurate a series of sewage treatment plants (STPs) in Bihar, including the state’s largest in Digha, as part of the Namami Gange mission aimed at rejuvenating the Ganga River. The inauguration is scheduled for 20 June and preparations are currently underway, officials confirmed.
The Digha STP, located in the heart of Patna, will play a pivotal role in reducing pollution levels in the river. With a treatment capacity of 100 million litres per day (MLD), the facility is designed to operate using solar energy, making it not only the largest in Bihar but also one of the most sustainable. It will treat wastewater from several neighbourhoods including Digha, Golghar, and key drainage points such as Kurji Nala, Rajapur Nala, and Mandiri Nala.
In addition to Digha, the Kankarbagh STP will serve the eastern residential belts of Patna, purifying sewage from densely populated areas. Other facilities in Mokama, Fatuha, Begusarai and Bakhtiyarpur are also set to be inaugurated simultaneously.
State authorities, including the Urban Development Department and Bihar State Urban Infrastructure Development Corporation (BSUIDC), are coordinating efforts to ensure completion and operational readiness ahead of the prime minister’s visit. The Digha STP’s 300-kilometre-long sewerage network is in its final stages of development.
The initiative forms part of the broader Namami Gange project, a flagship programme by the central government to reduce pollution and restore the ecological health of the Ganga. Once operational, these STPs are expected to drastically cut down the volume of untreated wastewater entering the river—particularly in Patna, where high levels of faecal coliform have rendered the river unfit for bathing or consumption.
