Grand Challenge: Sludge and Septage Management

Grand Challenge Topic: Sludge and septage management Sector: Water

Sub-sector: waste-water

Code: GC_Water_25_04

Date of publishing: 24 July 2025

Last Updated: 25 July 2025

Overview

Despite growing sanitation coverage, India struggles with faecal sludge and septage disposal, leading to groundwater and surface water contamination. The challenge lies in scaling decentralised treatment, service delivery models, and behavioural change in low-capacity regions. Furthermore, the volumes of sewage sludge that will be generated every year shall become a major hazard as billions have been invested in creating waste-water treatment capacity. This has been done without adequate capacity to handle the sludge that will come out at the other end.

Categories of Challenges

1. Sludges generated from sewage treatment plant (STPs).

2. Sludges generated in households / septic tanks (Faecal sludge management)

3. Sludges in sewer networks

   
   

Key Challenges being taken up

1. Solving for treatment and management STP sludges being generated in municipalities

2. Establishing a bridge between generated sludge and bio-fertilizer market

3. Solving for efficient and safe treatment and management of sludges being generated in households

4. Solving for efficient and safe treatment and management of sludges in sewer networks.

Workshops

• Next workshop in August 2025

FOAK Impact Projects

• Increasing agronomic value of treated sludges and creating a product that is appropriate for top-soil rejuvenation

• Centralised dewatering facilities

• Micro-enterprises for evacuation of sludges from septic tanks

Reference Material

• STP sludges in India: strategies for management and potential pathways for implementation. cGanga (IIT Kanpur) / National Mission for Clean Ganga, Government of India.

Insights on Sludge Management

• Click here for insights on sludge management

National Leads

• Dr. Vinod Tare, Founding Head, cGanga at Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur

• Mr. Sanmit Ahuja, MD and CEO, Bharatia

Important Links

• Join the sludge and septage management working-group and participate in the grand challenge | Click here to join

• Have a technology to introduce to India - get the solution validated via the ETV programme

• Want to contribute anything to sludge and biosolids - then send us the suggestion via the working group.