Harvest to Harness (H2H)
2004, the first ever competition on rainwater harvesting, organized by the
Rachana Sansad’s Institute of Environmental Architecture ( academy_architecture@yahoo.com ),
the Lotus Suites and The Times Group has declared its results. Twenty five
final Entries ranging from Urban, Commercial to Rural & Industrial, were
evaluated by a team of eminent panelists including Mr. Avinash Kubal, Deputy
Director, Maharashtra Nature Park, Dr. Claire Elouard, General Manager, Nature
Trust Foundation, Architect Nandan Mungekar and Dr. Ashok Joshi, Faculty,
Rachana Sansad’s Institute of Environmental Architecture.
For the first time, the
competition has brought together ideas, technical inputs and engineering
details for harvesting rainwater. It has not only dispelled myths related to
rainwater harvesting in cities, but also created awareness among students and
residents to conserve and store rainwater. The Municipal Corporation of
Greater Mumbai (MCGM) estimates that by 2021, the water shortage in Mumbai
will amount to nearly 2000 million liters daily. This gap in demand supply can
be bridged only by reducing and conserving water and by rainwater harvesting.
The top four entries which
were ranked in the open category include the Systems Department of Naval
Dockyard, Coloba, the people of Village Khamgaon Wadi, Maharashtra, St.
Catherine’s Home, Andheri and Dayanand Institute, Solapur. In the Design
Category, the top two awards were given to the students of I.E.S. College of
Architecture, Bandra, and the Kamala Raheja Vidyanidhi Institute of
Architecture. The contact details of winners in each category are as follows:
Open Category
1)
System Department Naval Dockyard – Project.
Admiral
Superintendent, Naval Dockyard,
Lion Gate, Mumbai –
400 023.
Contact: Lt. Commander
Majumdar
Tel: 22687551 /
22687624
2)
People of Village Khamgaon Wadi – Project
301, Sudama Chhatra
CGS., Pandurang Wadi Dombivli (East) – 421201
Contact: Dr. Ajit
Gokhale
Tel: 95251 –
2881173, 98209 32969
3)
St. Catherine’s Home
St. Catherine’s
Home,
Veera Desai Road,
Andheri (West)
Mumbai – 400 058.
Contact: Dr. Ajit
Gokhale
Tel: 95251 –
2881173, 98209 32969
4)
Dayanand Institute, Solapur
Address:
D. B. F Dayanand college of Arts and Science
Solapur – 413 002.
Contact: Dr.
Vadagbalkar S.K. (Representative)
Tel: 0217 2323193 ext.
39
Design Category
1)
I.E.S College of Architecture – Project
V.M.L. Vidya Sankul,
791, S.K. Marg, Bandra Reclamation,
Mumbai – 400 050.
Contact: Ashar Pranav
Tel: 26551616
2)
Kamla Raheja College of Architecture
Address : Vidyanidhi
Marg, Juhu Scheme, off 10th Road,
Mumbai – 400 049.
Contact: Neha Palkar
Tel : 26700918
OPEN CATEGORY
1) Systems department
Naval Dockyard:
Appropriately named Jal
Sanchayan, the rainwater harvesting system project designed by the Systems
Department of the Naval dockyard provides an ideal example of how awareness
and sensitivity among workmen and supervisors can yield positive results on
the environmental front. The Systems Department, which normally undertakes
repairs of warships and submarines, took up the challenge of bridging their
water scarcity in November 2003. Within 5 months, through diligent planning
and brainstorming, the team, using existing resources, was able to harvest
450,000 liters of rainwater used for both industrial uses such as hydraulic
testing of pipes and valves as well as non- industrial uses such as in
bathrooms and for gardening. By a combination of roof water harvesting and
charging of existing saline bore well, the team has plans to harvest 55 lakh
liters of water in the second phase.
2) People of Village
Khamgaon Sutar Wadi:
The rainwater harvesting
system developed in village Khamgaon Wadi is a tribute to the will &
dedication of its inhabitants. Rejecting the government sponsored Shiv
Kalin Paani Sathvan Yojna, which provides each family with Rs. 20,000 to
construct & store rain water, the villagers after an elementary geological
analysis of the region decided on ground water recharge as the best method for
harvesting rain. By constructing simple structures such as gabions, cordoning
walls around springs & lined ponds, the inhabitants through their own
labor were able to design a rainwater harvesting scheme at a cost of Rs. 75
per cubic meter of harvested water. The total water requirement is only 0.86%
of harvestable water.
3) St. Catherine’s Home,
Andheri:
The site of the 82 year-old
Home housing 360 inmates is abundantly blessed with water resources with two
open wells and two dry wells. Until November 2003, the Home never faced a
water shortage despite low municipal water supply in the region and spending
nearly 20,000 liters everyday on gardening. However, with the proliferation of
bore wells in the region attributed to recent developments around the home,
wells in the home began to go dry and threatened not only the domestic supply
of inmates but also the verdant greenery of the site. After trying all
possible means, the Sisters at St. Catherine called Dr. Ajit Gokhale, a rain
water harvesting consultant who after careful geological and land use study of
site, was able to revive the age old springs around the home. The site has a
water harvesting potential of nearly 68million liters, almost 2.5 times the
water requirement. The total cost of the system is 1.5 lakhs only. In
addition, the Home is planning to recycle wash water by using simple reed-bed
technique costing less than Rs. 2 lakh.
4) Dayanand Institute
Solapur:
Indigenously designed through
scientific and geology data accumulated by the Geology department of the
Dayanand Institute, the Rain water harvesting technique used in the Dayanand
Institute Campus collects rain from 270 sq. m of roof area and uses it to
recharge ground water, which is then harvested from a bore well.
With accurate geological data, scientists at the Dayanand Institute
have recharged the ground water at two depths: one at 10 – 15 m depth at the
seasonal water zone and at 40 – 50 m level at the low-yeild water zone. In
addition, a soak pit built around the well allows for collection and
percolation of surface run-off water from a surrounding area of nearly 2000 sq
m
DESIGN CATEGORY
1) IES College of
Architecture, Bandra:
Providing a plan for
harvesting rainwater in the 12,000 sq. m. Raja Shivaji Vidyalaya, Dadar, the
students of IES College of Architecture present a detailed analysis of the
acute water crisis in the campus and techniques to deal with it. These
techniques include direct charging of existing bore well through roof water
from terrace, allowing minimum water to municipal water drain, allowing water
from storm water drains to percolate by constructing bund walls and shallow
perforated vertical bores 29 feet apart as well as horizontal perforated pipes
along recreational ground for water percolation. Students point out the reason
for choosing the building as it would create social awareness among young
minds.
2) Kamala Raheja
Vidyanidhi Institute for Architecture (KRVIA), Juhu:
“There is a failure in
understanding nature as an integrated connecting system that operates
regardless of locality. Integrating Urbanization with ecology through the
design process is our primary objective” states the synopsis of the KRVIA
students of architecture. The design stems from a need to deal with the
socio-economic, aesthetic and environmental conditions prevailing in the slums
around the Juhu Vile Parle Development (JVPD) Scheme. It aims to provide
domestic water supply to slum inhabitants by harvesting roof water from a
covered walkway in Ronson Gardens, recycle the drained water of existing
filthy nallah through a reed-bed system and provide it for gardening as well
as for non-domestic purposes and to send across a message to citizens to
harvest rainwater for the future. With illustrative sketches and explanations,
the design could well be implemented by NGOs and other institutions having a
stake in the region.
1) IES College of
Architecture, Bandra:
Providing a plan for
harvesting rainwater in the 12,000 sq. m. Raja Shivaji Vidyalaya, Dadar, the
students of IES College of Architecture present a detailed analysis of the
acute water crisis in the campus and techniques to deal with it. These
techniques include direct charging of existing bore well through roof water
from terrace, allowing minimum water to municipal water drain, allowing water
from storm water drains to percolate by constructing bund walls and shallow
perforated vertical bores 29 feet apart as well as horizontal perforated pipes
along recreational ground for water percolation. Students point out the reason
for choosing the building as it would create social awareness among young
minds.
