Water Management
Scarcity of clean water is one of the biggest challenges facing rural India. Our integrated water management model includes modules that increase the quantity, quality, reliability and accessibility of water resources.
Understanding that water effects every aspect of village life and is essential for health, education and farmming. The Manavta Foundation team works with communities to secure adequate local water supplies, improve sanitation and manage waste water in school, home and throughout the community.
The main goal of Manavta Foundation’s integrated water management is making ‘villages’ water sustainable and empowering local communities for its management and maintenance. Manavta Foundation’s water management programme works primarily towards ensuring potable domestic and irrigation water in close proximity to water scarce or saline groundwater villages through cost effective. Innovative models. In strives to sensitize the community about the link between sanitation, health and safe drinking water and ensure their participation for sustainability and behavioural change. The interventions comprise water resource augmentations, awareness generation and promotion of access to and use of safe drinking water and sanitation, Manavta Foundation is working to make sure that this precious resource is nurtured and not lost.
The availability and quality of water are being improved
Rooftop rainwater harvesting system, storage tanks, bio-sand filters and sand posts with water taps in school and homes provide water for drinking and sanitation- allowing children to stay in school, especially girls who, without water at home, spend their days fetching water.
Groundwater levels are augmented with check dams, contour trenches, dug well recharging, pressurized recharge wells and pond development; and community soak wells and pits ensure safe wastewater disposal. Villagers and development committees are being trained to effectively manage water resources and water literacy sessions motivate villagers to conserve water.
A large part of our work focuses on restoring and reviving natural water resources. Uttar Pradesh & Bihar is blessed with a network of rivers, ponds and canals; however encroachment is common place and many lie dry. In conjunction with various partner we have been working to revitalize these structures in order communities may utilize them for agricultural and other such purpose.
We promote the use of clean technologies such as rainwater harvesting as a solution to what is an ever increasing water shortage. This helps to recharge depleting groundwater levels in the region in addition to providing surplus water for domestic use.
Provision of safe drinking water
We ensure that marginalized urban and rural communities receive an adequate supply of safe drinking water.
We work to tackle pollution problems at source, install a piped water supply to replace the old India Mark II hand pump and maintain access to clean water for the entire community.
Manavta Foundation’s approach to ensuring water security in rural India is to build the capacities of villagers and local leaders to manage community-led water projects, and to teach them the importance of hygiene and sanitation practices in growing healthier communities, and how to effectively advocate and compaign for safe drinking water.
Our activities focus on:
• Mass recharge and augmentation of depleting fresh ground water aquifers.
• Creating surface water and fresh ground water pockets in saline ground water zones.
• Awareness creation on water issues and safe drinking water in communities.
• Promotion of water efficient technologies.
• Empowering communities.
Rain water harvesting (RWH) is a simple method by which rainfall is collected for future usage.The with depleting groundwater levels and fluctuating climate conditions, RWH can go a long way to help mitigate these effects. Capturing the rainwater can help recharge local aquifers reduce urban flooding and most importantly ensure water availability in water scarce zones. Though the term seems to have picked up greater visibility in the last few years, it was and is even today, a traditional practice followed in rural India.
This water conservation method can be easily practiced in individual homes, apartments, park, offices and temples too, across the world. Farmers have recharged their dry bore wells created water banks in drought areas, greened their farms, increased sustainability of water resources and even created a river. An effective structure method in water scarce times, it is also an easily doable practice.
Rainwater Harvesting consultancy
Manavta Foundation has the in-house knowledge to undertake external consultancy work within the wider community to help establish rainwater harvesting structures on a large scale. We have trained employees who are competent in the design and install of rainwater harvesting structures, having received specific training from the government of India’s central Groundwater Board.
After much thought we developed a vision that we call “ integrated sustainable village development” (ISVD). ISVD is a multi-disciplinary approach to the quality of life in the villages, based on mobilized the community and building sustainable village-level institutions. It targets grassroots actions in water management,income enhancement (Primarily agricultural), family life (life skills) education, and preventive health. We felt it important to have a model that is modular, so each of these four inter connected programs is also a distinct component is replicable, scalable and sustainable.
Because water management is such a critical issue, we have placed great emphasis on this programme. It comprises rain water harvesting and storage, replenishment of ground water, rejuvenation of village ponds and so on. Efforts to prevent waterborne diseases centre on water purification, waste water disposal and better sanitation through the design, construction and promotion of low-cost filters, soak pits lactocines. These interventions as well as those of the other ISVD modules, have had a positive and measurable impact on the villages in which they have implemented.
