Rashtrapati Bhavan is using a technology that will be introduced in Delhi over the next eight to 10 months. The President’s Estate will be the first to treat sewage using “constructed wetlands”, say researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, who are building the sewage treatment project. Through the process, two million litres of water generated from toilets, bathrooms and the kitchens of the Bhavan will be treated daily. Traditional sewage water treatment involves processing it physically, chemically and biologically, but the new concept entails creating an artificial marsh where plants like hyacinth and sedge that resemble grass will treat the sewage and remove its impurities.
The plants (roots and stems) contain microorganisms that feed on sewage and break down waste. The process will then lead to clean water that will be deposited in an existing artificial lake in Rashtrapati Bhavan from where it will be used to water its famous gardens, and used in coolers.