Biogas plant under construction at Coimbatore’s Vellalore dumpyard lacks TNPCB consent, RTI reveals

The 250-tonne-a-day biogas plant being developed at the Vellalore dumpyard in Coimbatore. | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRAGEMENT A biogas plant, designed to process 250 tonnes of waste a day, is under construction at the Vellalore dumpyard in Coimbatore without the consent of the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB), according to information obtained under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.In a reply dated November 11, 2026, M.S. Vinodhkumar, District Environmental Engineer, TNPCB, Coimbatore, stated that no application had been received from the project for consent from the board. The information was sought by K.S. Mohan, secretary of the Kurichi-Vellalore Pollution Prevention Action Committee.The project, estimated to cost ₹69 crore, is being implemented by the Coimbatore Corporation. According to Corporation sources, construction began in March this year, with an 18-month period stipulated for completion.However, only 25% of the work has been completed so far. The Corporation has issued a notice to the contractor over the slow pace of construction, the sources said.Mr. Mohan alleged that the project is taken forward without adhering to the National Green Tribunal’s (NGT) directions on decentralised waste processing. Plans should not be drawn up to transport the entire city’s waste to the Vellalore dumpyard instead of processing it at decentralised facilities, in view of the tribunal’s directions. He also questioned the Corporation for commencing construction without applying for the mandatory Consent to Establish (CTE) from the TNPCB.Residents living near the Vellalore dumpyard were enduring unbearable foul odour emanating from the legacy waste and existing waste-processing units. The Corporation had failed to address their complaints or find a lasting solution and was now taking up another project without obtaining the necessary pollution control consent, he alleged.The Corporation Commissioner, Katta Ravi Teja, said he would look into the issue. Published - November 13, 2026 08:40 pm IST