Delhi starts recycling ball rolling

The Public Works Department of the city of Delhi, India, has issued a tender inviting global bids for the establishment of construction and demolition waste recycling facilities. The Department has identified four potential sites for the new facilities: Libaspur; near the Nizamuddin Bridge; Tikri Kalan and Kapashara. Each will have the capacity to process 150 tonnes of waste a day, with the Department providing the land while the successful bidder will bear the construction cost on a PPP model.

The contract will initially be for a three year period and will be awarded to bidders who offer the greatest return. It is estimated that each plant should be able to produce 30,000 bricks from the recycled waste per month, at a value of 750,000 rupees (US$12,200). If the plants are underused, the bidder will be expected to pay a fee for the land. The plants are expected to operational by March 2015 and will operate to European standards.

Currently some 300 tonnes of construction and demolition waste are produced by the PWD and other agencies per day, and this is currently simply dumped along with material produced from the activities of others by the roadside or along the Yamuna riverbed.