Success stories that will encourage more societies in the city to opt for the practice
Pune: If you want to preserve water for the future, you should learn to conserve it now. A handful of residents have realised how importance it really is. And today, they are not only saving water but also a lot of money, which until a few years ago was spent on water tanks.
Vijay Bhave, a resident of Karvenagar, opted for a rainwater harvesting system simply because he just could not see the monsoon rain water being wasted. “I was self-sufficient when it came to water supply, as I had a bore well. However, I thought of using the excess water, which was being collected through rainwater harvesting for my hobby of vermiculture during summers,” he said.
It cost Bhave Rs1.5 lakh to cover up an area of 3,200 sq ft on his roof top for the setup. “It’s been two years now, and I have seen a gradual increase in the level of water my borewell,” he said.
However, it’s not a cakewalk for everyone who supports the concept of rainwater harvesting. For Archana Jorwekar, a resident of Gera Foliage society in Vimannagar, it proved to be an uphill task to convince every society member about the benefits of such a system. “Hiring three tankers daily due to water shortage used to cost us Rs60,000 per month. I could not convince every flat owner, but majority agreed to implement the system and then we went ahead,” said Jorwekar.
The society implemented the project in July 2013. “Around 15,000 sq ft of land was used to make the borewell. We opted for the hanging method, which cost us Rs3.5 lakh instead of the underground system which would have cost Rs7 lakh. Now, we have enough water to last for a year,” adds Jorwekar.
Rainwater harvesting is not meant for benefiting a cluster of residents alone, is a message conveyed by the residents of Sky Lounge society in Kalyaninagar. The society has a borewell that provides enough water for the residents, but they still opted to save more by setting up a rainwater harvesting system. “We called for an engineer and did the project, which cost each flat not more than a thousand rupees. The society harvests water for the community as a whole. If all the residential complexes come together to harvest water for the community, the problem of water shortage will be permanently solved,” said Nitin Warty, a resident of the society in the rainwater harvest workshop.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}