Quenching thirst in Kerala villages

KOCHI: More than 1,00,000 villagers have begun receiving clean potable water across all 14 districts of Kerala through 127 water filtration units installed by Mata Amritanandamayi Math as part of its Jivamritam project that was inaugurated by President Ram Nath Kovind in October 2017. In the next two months, the Math intends to take the number of these water filtration units in the state to 200, benefitting an additional 60,000 people from the marginalized rural communities, helping avoid the health problems plaguing them due to water contamination and water-borne diseases.​

Speaking on the World Water Day, Maneesha Sudheer, director of Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham’s Center for Wireless Networks and Applications, who heads the Jivamritam project, recounted the various projects undertaken by the Math and the Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham related to water conservation, water distribution and management, and water quality and monitoring.She said, “Over the last six months, 50 faculty and staff and 200 students from Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham have worked tirelessly to install 127 community water filtration systems in Kerala, including 55 in Alappuzha, 16 in Kollam, 11 in Thiruvananthapuram and 10 each in Thrissur and Kozhikode.

By May-end, the total number of Jivamritam systems installed in the state will reach 200,offering clean potable water to 60,000 more people. Most villagers in marginalized rural communities lack access to clean water and suffer from various illnesses due to consuming contaminated potable water. The Jivamritam project will help address the issues of water contamination and waterborne- illnesses in villages in Kerala, directly impacting public health.”

The Jivamritam project was conceptualized and designed by the faculty and students of Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham. More than 40,000 hours were spent visiting villages in Kerala, conducting site surveys, engaging with community leaders, conducting awareness campaigns, and installing the Jivamritam water filtration systems. The initial phase of the project is funded by the Mata Amritanandamayi Math at a cost of Rs 100 crore.