Rachana Park RWH system – A role model for other developers
The rainwater harvesting (RWH) system installed atop Rachana Park in Kopargaon township of Ahmednagar in Maharashtra benefits a total of 90 families living in the premises. Rain collected from 1850 sqm of the rooftop effectively charges 7 borewells, providing for all the water needs of the community.
This was reported by a Jal Shakti Abhiyan (JSA) team comprising Smt. Richa Bagla, Nodal Officer, Ahmednagar District and Shri. Jitendra Wagh, Deputy Collector, EGS, Ahmednagar who visited the area situated close to Nagar-Manmad highway on 11th July, 2019 to inspect the RWH system.
How the RWH system at Rachana Park works:
• In Rachana Park, water collection and filtration chambers are built around every bore well pipe; and the roof is fitted with feeders of 4 inches diameter. Those pipes are fitted in such a way that water is brought down to the collection chamber.
• The open bore well pipe in the chamber is drilled with small holes. It is then wrapped with gunny bag or rope made from natural material to cover the holes.
• The chamber pit is filled with coarse sand, brick bats and wooden coal which act as a natural filter for water. The chamber is covered with a lid.
• The rainwater collected on the rooftop of each building runs through the feeder pipes into the filtration chamber, where the water is filtered with the natural filtration process and then seeps through the holes of the bore well pipe.
• A diverter cock of 4 inches diameter is installed in line with the feeder pipe, to divert excess water in case of heavy rainfall and/or flooding of the filtration chamber.
Commenting on their observations, “Rachana Park is role model for other developers and building contractors. Kopargaon Municipal Council (KMC) is promoting installation of RWH systems for all buildings and providing all necessary information, including the benefits of the system; to all its residents,” Ms. Bagla said.
In addition, to increase awareness about RWH and promote a jan andolan, Kopargaon Municipal Council has created a Facebook page dedicated to this mission. It is on this page that all updates are given. Further, with the help of National Urban Livelihood Mission (NULM), a department of KMC, rallies is conducted and meetings are held for office and sanitation staff as well as members of Self Help Groups (SHGs).
According to Mr. Wagh, a special tree plantation drive has also been initiated to encourage NGOs, schools, residents, welfare associations and housing societies to work towards increasing the green cover of the city.
Kopargaon Municipal Council has in place 4 storage tanks in Yesgaon village that supply drinking water to Kopargaon City. To fill these tanks, water is taken from Darana and Gangapur dams through Godavari left canal. However, these 4 tanks do not have the capacity to meet the water needs of Kopargaon city. RWH systems are being promoted to address this need.
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