From killer crocodiles to clean water in rural villages

The I-WASH program aims to combat waterborne diseases and address challenges facing communities without access to clean water. The program has built toilets in schools, provided handwashing facilities, as well as a solar-powered borehole and educational services on sanitation practices and how to maintain the water points. Through the help of the I-WASH program, as of May 2022, 300 functional toilets had been built in households across more than 30 communities.

To combat health and sanitary issues arising from high rates of open defecation and a lack of government support, community members worked together to fund and build 14 easily accessible toilets that are cleaned daily and open for anyone to use.

The Filter X360 uses gravity to purify water without requiring any power supply or chemicals by using ultrafiltration technology to remove bacteria and viruses from fresh water sourced from nearby rivers, lakes and ponds. The machine can purify 1,000 liters per hour and reduces the risk of illness and also prevents locals from having to purchase bottled water or simply go without clean drinking water.

In a village facing water scarcity, generous locals with funds to spare are installing boreholes in their homes with pumps outside for other residents in the village to access clean, safe water.

Members of a water-insecure community mobilized to contribute a portion of their monthly stipends to repair and maintain the singular borehole providing water to the village. The community members — primarily women — also installed water taps throughout the community in locations like schools and mosques to ensure easy access to clean, safe drinking water.

The Conditional Cash Transfer program provides a monthly stipend to low-income individuals. The program was implemented in six local government areas and benefits over 48,000 people. Thanks to the funds from the program, several local women were able to pool their stipends together to repair their area’s only borehole to ensure locals have access to clean water.

In rural areas where access to clean water is scarce and leads to increased waterborne illnesses, Smart Project is expanding safe water access by building wells in the community. The organization also provided the 30 households in the community with a 10-liter keg of water for cleaning, bathing, and washing dishes to prevent people from having to travel long distances to reach fresh water.

Architect Kalpana Ramesh and the Rainwater Project, supported by Telangana's government, are restoring centuries-old abandoned stepwells as functional water sources by removing decades of accumulated garbage, rebuilding stone structures, and installing rainwater-harvesting systems. Since the first restoration was completed in December 2022, the well has consistently maintained a water depth of nine meters, even during the summer, providing clean water for the first time in 40 years. To date, 25 stepwells have been restored across Telangana.

Community members, in collaboration with the non-profit Save the Children and the United States Agency for International Development, installed a solar-powered borehole earlier this year, making clean water more accessible to the village. Community members regularly clean the water taps and perform system maintenance to ensure the water supply isn’t disrupted, as the solar-powered solution has become their primary source of clean water.

Amidst water scarcity and increased waterborne diseases, community members are using sand dams, an innovative water management system, to conserve rainwater for daily use. Sand dams offer extended water storage capabilities, lasting up to a year, ensuring community members have consistent access to clean water for farming, cooking and general hygiene. There are currently six sand dams in the community serving 600 households.