Taping Rainwater on Himalayan Mountains of Uttarkhand

Taping Rainwater on Himalayan Mountains of Uttarkhand

A collaborative effort of  KSCST, Govt. of Uttarkhand, UNDP and Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation 

Place name is Pheri village, Pheri - Kimora Gram Panchayat, Jaunpur Block, Tehri Garhwal district in Uttarkhand, Northern India  at an altitude of 2000 meters, closest town Mussoorie. 

September 20th marked a day to introduce Rainwater Harvesting (RWH) in the region and build skills among the local youth.

A cost effective, rugged and sustainable model of RWH was demonstrated and built at one location and for subsequent replication in 10 houses :

Himalayan hilly terrain

Pheri Kimora Gram Panchayat - House owner : Ramachandra
The house is on the first floor and the ground floor is the cattle shed to keep the house warm during winter. The building  roof, which is inclined on both sides is made of corrugated sheet metal (40 ft long and 18 ft wide). 

House for RWH

The galvanised colour coated steel sheet gutters (nala) are installed for the full length of the roof at the lower end on either side of the house.  Metal clamps are fixed at regular intervals to hold the gutter in position and also to provide slope for rainwater to flow towards one side.

Galvanised colour coated steel sheet gutters (nala)

The rainwater from the gutter is guided to 75mm PVC pipes and the pipes from both side of the house are interlinked in the front side of the house. 

First Flush Lock (FFL) and diverter drum mounted on the floor  receives the roof water at its inlet.

First Flush Lock (FFL) and diverter drum                Sand or small aggregates 

First five minutes initial flow of roof top rainwater with contaminants like dust, bird droppings, tree leaves etc will get stored in the FFL drum and subsequently the gas filled valve will automatically close the inlet of the drum to allow the cleaner water to flow in to the HDPE tank.

Round platform for placing HDPE tank                                HDPE tank with sand bed filter

A sand bed filter (aluminium perforated bowl filled with sand or small aggregates) placed at the mouth of the manhole of the HDPE tank is used for final polishing of rainwater. The filtered water from the sand bed is allowed to flow in to the tank. Round platform is built using local stones and cement to an height of 18 inches at the ground level beside the house for placing the HDPE tank of 2000 liters capacity. 

The filtered rain water is stored in the HDPE tank in the absence of light. The tap at the bottom of the HDPE tank can be used to collect clean rainwater which can be used for domestic needs. The roof of around 720 sqft / 67 sqm can provide around 1,00,000 liters of clean rainwater per year. The tank of 2000 liters will get filled in a day of just 30mm or little more than one inch rainfall.

Sharing the experience of rainwater harvesting and building water security among the most HUMBLE LOCAL COMMUNITY, was a truly joyous experience.

Tehri Garhwal is one of the Himalayan hilly terrain district of  Uttarkhand state of India. The economy is mainly agrarian, despite most of the land being unfit for cultivation owing to the precipitous and rocky slopes. The region has many power projects and enjoys almost uninterrupted electricity. Winding roads are in poor condition owing to the frequent landslides.

The region is in the foothills of the Garhwal Himalayan range. Being at an average altitude of 2000 metres, Tehri Garhwal, with its green hills and varied flora and fauna, is a fascinating hill range. Commanding snow ranges to the northeast and glittering views of the Doon Valley and Shiwalik ranges in the south, the nearest town Mussoorie was once said to present a 'fairyland' atmosphere to tourists.

The story of 'Pheri'  

The region has an annual rainfall of around 2000mm and the river Aglad (tributary of Tons which is the tributary of Yamuna) flows at the bottom of the valley . Several kilometres uphill, villages with scattered houses are dependent on springs and streams for daily water needs. Steep slope drain off rainwater quickly and water reaches the bottom of the hill to join the river Aglad. Villagers (mostly woman) trek few kilometres to collect water and carry water on their back climbing the steep slippery winding walk paths through thick woods. My mobile camera could capture waterfalls and the flowing river, but are not of reach by villagers (mirage). Few rich among them hire daily labour to haul water. It is common for grownup boys to leave the village and move down hill to towns (Dehradun) because of water scarcity. Tourist across the country and even from outside India reach here for adventure trekking in Himalayan hills and water sports in Tons river, just few kilometres uphill, people decamp their villages because of non availability of WATER.

'Harvest Rainwater and a Host of  Benefits'

Thank you KSCST, Govt of Uttarkhand,  UNDP, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation - Rashmi Bajaj, Subrato Paul, Waseem Yousf, Shreyansh, Neeraj Kumar Sharma, and more so for the PEOPLE of  Pheri Kimora.