The sight of dirty stagnant water pools, overflowing septic tanks, and streams gushing down the road during a downpour has become a common scene in Thimphu city. City roads filled with water, debris, and several core city areas with leaking septic tanks in the immediate aftermath are becoming a regular problem.
According to Thimphu Thromde, this is due to the careless dumping of wastes along the drains and connecting drain water directly into the sewerage pipes. The Thromde said that despite informing the public several times, the problem continues to persist.
Thrompon Kinlay Dorjee said,”Many people are letting the rainwater from their roofs flow directly into the sewerage. We have removed most of it but some are still there. Only toilet wastes and waste from the kitchen should be let into the sewerage. Drain water should not be connected to the sewerage pipes”.
The size of the current sewerage pipes in the town has also added to the problem. Thromde said that the current pipes are not able to manage the increasing amount of waste. To address the issue, the Thromde will soon replace the existing pipes with bigger pipes for higher waste capacity.
The Thrompon said that besides this, illegal dumping of all sorts of waste is also a major contributor to the problem.
“Currently at sites such as vegetable markets, Norzin lam and Changzamtog it is one of the major problems. And at the vegetable markets, people dump spoilt meat and sanitary napkins directly into the sewerage chambers,” said the Thrompon.
He added that the Thromde has deployed people to clear sewerage blockage but the support of the public is vital.
Tshering Dendup
