Construction of 18 Rain Water Harvesting Plants in 9 wards under Koila union of Kalaroa Upozila of Satkhira district to reduce the Risk of arsenic Contamination of Community people.
Location the project: At 9 wards of Koila union of Kalaroa Upozila in Satkhira district.
Rationale for choosing the intervention: While preparation of the project planning it is observed that at 12 unions like Helatala, Keralkata, Sonabaria, Joynagare, Chandan pur, Gugikhali, Keragachi, Jushadangha, Deyara,Jalalabad, Langaljhera and Koila 17811 water of tube wells were examined and found that water of 16,146 tube wells are arsenic contaminated. There were 683 arsenic patients were traced out. Next the numbers of arsenic patients rose. The situation of arsenic contamination worsened. In the Bengali month of Chaitra and Baishakh, the layer of water goes downwards and the cannels and ponds which are naturally water preservers are dried and shortage of pure drinking water keenly felt. Most of the tube wells become inactive, due to which scarcity of pure drinking water prevails. Poor people suffer to collect pure drinking water from remotest places. As such they are compelled to drink contaminated water and the limit of arsenic in the project area is intolerable for human body. Due to change of climate the hit is increasing gradually, on the other hand for life and livelihood necessities men are irrigating ground water for agricultural purpose .As a result the layer of ground water day by day are going to down wards. So, pure drinking water is going beyond reach of mankind. As such arsenic is entering into human body and it has been creating different complicated diseases. The arsenic patients have been suffering from incurable diseases. To save the villagers from arsenic attack, the villagers are to be made aware as to effects of drinking arsenic contaminated water and to make them habituated in drinking and preserving rain water which is arsenic free and it will reduce the health risk from arsenic attack. In CRA operation the importance of erecting rain water harvesting plant is emphasized.
Implementation period: 02-03-2008 to 14- 04-2008
Involvement of local government and DMCs, role of the NGO: BNM as an implementing NGO in cooperation and collaboration with union Disaster Management Committee (UDMC) tried to implement the recommendations made in CRA operation and CRA revisit through project planning and implementation.
Role of the NGO: The project was planned by the members of union disaster management committee (UDMC) at Kushodangha on 23-07-2007 in the meeting the members of UDMC decided that in the findings of CRA revisit on 07-05-2007 the Installation of rain water harvesting plants and awareness raising for safe water supply to reduce water borne health risk ‘ was urgently needed and with the help of the members of PIC and UDMC, the project was started for implementation on and from 04- 09-2007 and ended on 23-11-2007 The main role of the NGO was monitoring and imparting logistic supports and to make good communication with the stakeholders and the beneficiaries.
Total cost of the intervention: 4, 02,125/-
Impact, benefit to the poor and the most Disadvantage: 18 rain water harvesting plants were setup at 9 wards of Koila union where scarcity of pure arsenic free drinking water entail the poor people to drink arsenic polluted water from red marked tube wells .Poor people of the community who due to poverty can not collect pure and arsenic free drinking water will be able to collect pure rain water and free from arsenic contamination and as such the health risk of water borne diseases will be reduced.