Safe Drinking Water for the parched lot

Ooranis are village ponds that provide water for drinking and domestic use. These are small earthen structures with a bund and occasionally with filter wells that supply water to the villagers. Water is stored in a pit below the ground level. There are dug-out ponds, ponds with built inlets and outlets, or fully built ponds with filter wells.

Ill maintenance and heavy siltation for decades reduced the oorani’s capacity. Erratically-distributed unimodal rainfall, absence of notable rivers and brackish ground water force the people to harvest the rain water by digging the earth – an ancient technology.

Given the increasing water scarcity, competitive demand, and widespread pollution, water resources have become a critical factor for livelihood, with drinking and domestic water use getting top priority. In areas where ground water is polluted, or where it is either not available or saline, or where rainfall is either scanty or unpredictable, people depend on traditional water harvesting structures like oorani. Oorani rehabilitation will provide assured safe drinking water to all people at a low investment and with minimal environmental hazard. Unlike other sources such as overhead tanks, desalination plants and hand pumps, there is no major maintenance and management cost involved.