Water for Four Schools in Tamil Nadu, India
by Peter Coughlan, PhD, Executive Director of WaterBridge Outreach: Books + Water
Thanks to the initiative and generosity of students at Holy Names University, Oakland, California, four schools in remote rural areas now have clean drinking water. These four schools are in the State of Tamil Nadu, a part of India that suffers from extremes of floods and drought. In addition, the oppressive heat of many months of the year means the children get very thirsty. Now, for the first time, the children in these schools have their own drinking water. (click on images to enlarge)
These state schools are in four villages that are a considerable distance from one another – Mullipakkam, Salavankuppam, Ellandoppu, and Arungkundram. Up to now the water that has been available to these schools has been untreated well water, contaminated because of the pesticides and fertilizer used in the fields, and also because so many of the villagers and their animals defecate in or near these open fields.
Working in collaboration with WaterBridge Outreach, Curt Degler of SAVE Int’l and Sonny Saravanan of TVO (Sonny can be seen below filling water containers from the RO system) have installed small reverse osmosis (RO) systems in each of the schools. These RO systems, which can be seen in the images accompanying this text, remove salt and toxins from the water by using pressure pumps to push the water through membranes that purify it.
 COVID-19 SupportWorking with Curt Degler of South Asian Village Empowerment International, we helped to fund a rice distribution in Tamil Nadu in some of the villages we've both visited and have books and water projects in. Good quality rice was provided for 100 families during this difficult time of the pandemic. |  Mobile LibraryThis motorbike mobile library serves villages in a remote rural area south of Chennai. Mr. Venkatesan is the librarian-teacher who takes the books from one village to another on his 100cc motorbike |  Tuition Center RoofA second initiative that was enabled by JosephJoseph participation in the London Color Run (see Anna Nagar water project) was a partial reconstruction of the Kazhanipakkam Assembly Hall to include a steel sheet pitched roof over the whole building and the installation of lighting and security gates. This area provides additional space for children attending the free tuition (tutoring) school located on the main floor. |
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 Free Tuition Tutoring CenterWaterBridge Outreach provides books + literacy materials to after-school (free) tuition centers run by Save INT'L near Mamallapuram, India. These centres play a vital role not only in helping the children learn English, but also in preparing them for their national 10th grade exams and future life. |  Bore Well and Hand Pump RepairsOur 2nd water project in Anna Nagar saw us working with Save Int'l again to overhaul an old government installed bore well with non-functioning hand pump that has not worked for many years. The well required a deep cleaning to be reactivated and working with Save Int'l we hope to convert the well into a electric powered submersible pump with water holding tank. |  Dalit Toilet Complex RehabilitationIn many parts of India the Dalits – the community or caste originally referred to as the “Untouchables” – still suffer discrimination. WBO, working with Curt Degler of Save Int'l, has engaged over the years in numerous literacy and water infrastructure projects that express respect for the human dignity of the Dalits while also meeting basic needs. Much needed repairs and rehabilitation of the water system that supplies the Dalit toilet complex have now been completed. |
 School WashroomsLack of sanitation facilities is a serious problem in schools in many parts of India. This lack of basic infrastructure can have a negative impact on childrens’ education, especially on the education of girls. In collaboration with Save Int’l, WaterBridge Outreach is constructed new toilet facilities at Melaiyuur School in Tamil Nadu. |  School WashroomsWhen the elementary school in Karanai desperately needed toilets for the use of the children, WBO partnered with Curt Degler, executive director of Save Int'I, to provide basic washroom facilities for the school. Otherwise, like almost half of the population of India, the children would have to defecate in the open. The lack of basic sanitation is only too often a source of diseases such as diarrhoea, cholera and typhoid. |  Bore Well + Hand PumpThe attitude and spirit of the villagers in the Irular tribal enclave at Kazhanipakkam make this project a very special one. These smiling Irular people have very little of their own and they were delighted when the new well and pump made water available in their village instead of a long walk away. |
 Water for 4 SchoolsThanks to the initiative and generosity of students at Holy Names University, Oakland, California, four schools in remote rural areas now have clean drinking water. |  Reverse Osmosis SystemIn 2012 residents in Ellandoppu had no clean water for drinking, washing pots, and general sanitation. The already toxic state of the water had deteriorated further after the infiltration of salt water from the sea following the devastating Indonesian earthquake and tsunami in 2010. The solution to the water problem was the installation of a reverse osmosis system. |  Reverse Osmosis SystemNorth Mamallapuram Dalit School ~ this small school serves primary students from poor Dalit families. The two classrooms are very basic with cement floors and battered old wooden desks, yet made bright and welcoming by displays of the students' work. A reverse osmosis system has been installed to provide students and teachers with purified drinking water. |
 Reverse Osmosis SystemAfter 10+ years of constant use the reverse osmosis system in Salavankuppam required a complete overhaul. Working with Curt Degler of Save Int'l we provided funds for this much needed work and are happy to announce that the ro system is now providing clean, purified drinking water to the residents. |  Bore Well + Hand PumpFunds raised by the company JosephJoseph, through their participation in the annual summer “Color Run” in London, allowed us to construct this bore well and hand pump in Anna Nagar, India. |  Bore Well + Hand PumpThanks to a generous grant from the Sonoma Women's Giving Circle, WBO worked with Save International to install a 150 ft well with hand pump in the rapidly expanding enclave known as Jeeva Nagar. The majority of newcomers are victims of what is known as “the illegal bonded labor segment” – the bonded laborers in this “labor segment” are perhaps best described as modern-day slaves. |