India Bio-Sand Water Filter Project Update 12-01-2008
Please see photos in the Gallery!
From: Cathy Forsberg
Sent: Thu 12/01/08
December 01, 2008
Dear Friends,
Many of you have contacted us to inquire our about our welfare considering the tragic events in Mumbai. We are safe and sound. The country, however, was shaken by the terrorist attacks and is on a heightened state of alert.
This is our last day in India and we have a couple of free hours so we thought we would dash off another update. There are probably 100 things we could write about but time won't allow. One of the more interesting events was a visit to the village of K Muthakadahalli. We met our workshop crew who were delivering 15 addition filters to the village.
K Muthakadahalli is in an area called Sidlagatta, about 60 kilometers northwest of Kolar. This village is in the heart of the Kolar silk industry. They have adequate water for irrigation farming so they are able to grow mulberry bushes in abundance. Mulberry leaves are the only food a silkworm will eat. The villagers not only grow the mulberry but also feed the silkworms, grow the cocoons and sell them in the wholesale markets where they are de-silked, spun into thread and weaved into cloth. This is a very labor intensive process and these villagers have a little extra money because of their industry and fortune to be living in this area.
Many of the homes in K Muthakadahalli show the benefit of some development projects which improve the lives of the residents. One of the more interesting projects is the production of Bio-gas for use in cooking. A Bio-gas system is quite simple and effective. A cylindrical tank with a domed lid is buried in the ground. A pipe extends from the top of the domed lid. A slurry of cow manure and water is poured into the tank resulting in the production of methane gas. The gas rises to the top of the dome and out the pipe, which is fitted with a plastic hose. The hose runs into the kitchen of the house and is attached to a two-burner stove. Voila.cooking gas which burns hot and clean. This cooking fuel is much healthier than burning wood or dried cow dung in the house which create noxious smoke. Many of the households have a cow or buffalo for milk production so there is an ample supple of raw material. The Rural Development Societies, through funding provided by the Government, provide these Bio-gas systems free of charge.
Another interesting observation was that most of the homes had mosquito screens on the windows and doors. We don't see much of this disease prevention technique, even at the best hotel in Kolar where we stay. Mosquito born diseases like Malaria, Dengue Fever, and Chickengunia are quite common in this area. We even saw a mosquito net over a bed in this village, a very rare sight.
The children had a school holiday due to the death of a former Prime Minister. That insured that we had a full contingent of giggling followers wherever we went in the village. The children love to have their pictures taken and are delighted to see them on the screen of the digital camera afterwards. The boys amused themselves with tops that they wrapped with course string and whipped around to get them spinning on the hard packed dirt of the village streets. Our driver for this trip, Luksman Naryana (we affectionately called him L.N.) tried his luck spinning the top but the kids were much better at it.
After three hours in the village we were anxious to travel to another village 6 kilometers away where there were 15 filters installed. After several wrong turns and miss-directions we decided to head back to Kolar. It had rained the previous two days and the roads were very muddy, slippery and rutted and we didn't want to chance winding up in a ditch.
Farewells are always difficult for us so we try to do something fun with the staff the last day of our visit in Kolar. One of the traditions we have developed is that we buy the entire staff new work uniforms every time we visit. Late in the afternoon on our last day we gave out the uniforms, each one individually tailored, along with a souvenir pen and a bonus. Pictures were taken and a lot of laughs ensued. We try to tease the guys a little to create a light atmosphere. One of the running jokes is that our workshop driver, Chilapathy, is hated by dogs when he drives RamaChandra's car. The dogs chase the car barking and growling only when he drives. One of the other men, Uday, gets teased because when he first began working for us he never wore his sandals. We always make a big deal about his footwear.
After the gift giving and teasing at the workshop, we all piled into an SUV, the workshop truck, and RamaChandra's car and headed for the R.N. Resort in the town of Bangarpet, about 10 kilometers away. We picked this spot because none of the guys had ever eaten there before so it is a little special for them. Moreover the food is great! We had a delightful surprise; a man named Shanti Kumar who worked with Mike forty years ago in the Peace Corps joined us for dinner with his daughter. Years ago he worked as a typist in the office and stayed on for many years as an employee of Mysore State Agro Industries, the government corporation that worked in partnership with the Peace Corps. When Mysore State Agro Industries closed down he worked for a heavy equipment manufacturing facility near Bangarpet. It was great to visit with him. He brought us gifts of "typewriter art" that he creates, each one taking about 10 hours to complete. We reminisced about the American volunteers we knew in common and promised to send one of his art pieces to each one of the Peace Corp volunteers when we return to the USA. After stuffing ourselves with a variety of vegetarian dishes we said our good byes and we left for Bangalore, arriving at around 11:30pm.
This was a very enjoyable and productive three weeks in India. There is never enough time to accomplish everything we would like to, however we leave the project in good hands. We look forward to our next visit in June.
Cathy and Mike
South Asia Pure Water Initiative, Inc.
2832 Whitney Avenue
Hamden, CT 06518
www.sapwii.org
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