The Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), a Bengaluru-based non-profit organisation, has completed a rainwater harvesting project in Kuttanad.
The project ‘rainwater harvesting to resolve the drinking water crisis’ was implemented with the support of LIC HFL. As part of the initiative, 280 ferrocement tanks each with a capacity of 10,000 litres have been installed at nine grama panchayats in Kuttanad. The project, according to ATREE officials, has benefitted 840 households covering 3,360 individuals. The beneficiaries had borne 20% of the total cost, creating a sense of ownership and responsibility among the communities. It was implemented with the support of respective local bodies.
The project was inaugurated by Y. Viswanatha Gowd, managing director, LIC HFL, at a function held in Mankombu on Monday. Anita Arjundas, executive director, ATREE Bengaluru, Priyadarsanan Dharmarajan, senior fellow, Atree, Jojo T.D., project manager, ATREE, Alappuzha and local body heads attended the function. ATREE officials said LIC HFL had promised to provide more corporate social responsibility funds to implement the second phase of the project.
