<<This story is published in CitizenMatters>>

Why did the Indo-Aryans expand towards the Indus Valley and then the Ganges Plain? Why even the Dravidians also settled near the rivers?

With the serious water crisis we are facing, I think you have the answer already!

So, as the “TIME IS RUNNING OUT for US, LETS JUST DO What Is Critical for Our Survival”

Did you know?

“Groundwater is an important, decentralized source of drinking water for millions of people in India. It meets nearly 85% of rural domestic water needs and 50% of urban water needs [7]”

As per IISc, Bangalore, “Bengaluru May Turn Uninhabitable in Next Few Years”[9]

“Surprisingly, despite the record-setting rains this year(2017), the city’s groundwater levels have significantly worsened compared to last year. Experts have attributed this to borewell exploitation, concreting landscape, and erratic intensity of the rains(flash rains, remember flash flood in Chennai?).”[8]

Putting traditional ground water recharging pits, would not work in current situation. As in the case of any patient in serious condition, we need drips, food pipe to push medicine and other nutrition into the body directly, Rain Water Harvesting for Re-Use and Bore-well Recharge technique would do the same for reviving the ground water level quickly, reduce wastage of precious water, save money!

So, what is required is that we as citizens implement, this technique to make sure instead of sending all rain waters to polluted drains/lakes, reuse some and send some directly into the bore well. Simple isn’t it?

Let’s see how we at SV Symphony, have invested in a simple method to Rain Water Harvesting for Re-Use and Bore-well Recharge and all other things:

2014-Nov: Contacted Mr. Ayyappa Masagi(Water Literacy Foundation). Everyone at SV Symphony had extended their support.

2015-April: Project “Rain Water Harvesting for Reuse and Bore-well Recharge completed”. (clean rainwater for reuse: https://photos.app.goo.gl/zdBTrRX9ocjWddPh6)

2015-Dec: Saving of ~Rs. 2,72,000 in water bill. (https://drive.google.com/open?id=1XV9MZpw3rMCi2JJhuI98YKqiBru76hzu)

2016: We made sure STP was functioning properly and repaired the functional deficiencies.

2016: We closed down our swimming pool. When people are struggling to drink water, very soon, an individual swimming pool will be a thing of the past!

2016–17: Added Aerators for our taps.

We are spreading the message but unless the pain is really felt a bit, there is no way you can make someone understand the severity of the problem! In neighborhood apartments we heard scary stories of water crisis, we heard stories of water tanker bidding, we heard stories of uncertain days and nights! But would like to hear stories of implementing, “Rain Water Harvesting for Reuse and Bore-well Recharge” at their apartments and how it is helping them. And if most of the houses in Bangalore have this technology it can recover some of the damages we did by occupying the 85% lakes.

Though I am a pretty self-motivated person, if we all don’t act now we may be putting all of our lives for a terrible terrible future, a future where water would be the cause of daily fights b/w neighbors, communities, neighborhoods, states, and then escalating to war between the nations!!

The most beautiful thing is, that we have a solution in our hands to reverse this and give a better future for us and the coming generation. So, can WE please Act Right Now?

References: What Do We Must Do?

1A.Contacts for Rain Water Re-Use and Bore-Well Recharge: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UQdiG6eB-sW3RgLIw_mLXQZRjDWYN_U94REZLSB8_c8/edit?usp=sharing

1B. Recharge Wells Primer(Everything you need to know, including contacts) http://bengaluru.urbanwaters.in/recharge-well-primer-398

2. SV Symphony Plan: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1l-v5-qDKNiYh6-wRO9pCO_dSe0RE06Xd

3. Community Example Like SV Symphony: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsL-BE8K-wI

4. Formula for Water Saving: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1rh5J-E9k9qxQDd_vW0AJwtBT3CdPtxDo

5A. Restoring and recharging wells must to deal with water crisis(S Vishwanath, a water activist): https://www.gaonconnection.com/news-in-english/restoring-and-recharging-wells-must-to-deal-with-water-crisis–45916

5B.Before the Flood, a great documentary on Climate Change: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9xFFyUOpXo

6.H2wOe: India’s Water Crisis — Warning to the World: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjoykuhtOhg

7. Article Groundwater Level Dynamics in Bengaluru City, India

8. https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/why-continuous-rain-failed-to-raise-groundwater-level-in-bengaluru/article20006721.ece

9. https://www.news18.com/news/india/on-verge-of-acute-water-crisis-bengaluru-may-turn-uninhabitable-in-next-few-years-warn-experts-2130111.html

10. Restoring and recharging wells must deal with water crisis: https://www.gaonconnection.com/news-in-english/restoring-and-recharging-wells-must-to-deal-with-water-crisis–45916

Credits: Thanks to everyone at SV Symphony for supporting this cause. Specially, Mr. Marasami for sharing the statistics on water savings, helping me in implementing the project, and spreading the message actively. Thanks to Giridhar for the idea and implementation of Aerators. Thanks to Siva for sharing the lake photo taken a year back at the same time.