Households are connected to the treatment system through a drainage network

India marks 75 years of her independence August 15, 2022. In these 75 years, it has become a fully-functional democracy.

A democracy is all about the power of the people. Down To Earth celebrates the power of the people of India by presenting a collection of 10 villages and districts across India where people have worked to radically improve their lot through better solutions for drinking water and sanitation.

Until 2018, Bajar Bhogaon village in Panhala block and Jainapur village in Shirol block, two villages in Kolhapur, faced issues of grey-water management.

Grey water from kitchens and bathrooms from 599 households of Bajar Bhogaon and 498 households of Jainapur village flowed into open drains, causing stagnation of wastewater in the lower reaches of the villages.

In Bajar Bhogaon, untreated grey water with debris and silt collected in agricultural fields, affecting farmers’ crops. The stagnant water reeked and wastewater passed at places into the Kasari river.

In Jainapur, the wastewater stood near the Gram Panchayat, causing difficulty in proper working of Gram Panchayat staff. The village residents regularly complained about mosquito breeding and foul smell.

The narrow lanes and lack of space at the household level also made it difficult for the Gram Panchayat to propagate the idea of soak pits in the village.

Bajar Bhogaon and Jainapur village approached the Water Supply Department, Zila Parishad, Kolhapur, for help.

To help the Gram Panchayat find a solution, the staff of the Water Supply Department Zila Parishad Kolhapur surveyed the situation and collected information on the availability of land, slope of the area and volume of grey water generated.

They came to the conclusion from the available information that a waste stabilization pond system was the best solution for the management of the grey water of the village. Gram Panchayat land was utilized in both the villages with permission from the district collector.

Households are connected to the treatment system through a drainage network. Both villages have planned the treatment unit where gravity flow can be used to convey grey water from the source to the treatment system to minimize the cost of transporting water by means of external source of energy.

Wastewater from the drains flows into the screening chamber and floating debris is removed here.

The wastewater then flows into the anaerobic tank, where the retention time is one to two days.

Some solids are removed while those that settle at the bottom decompose in this tank.

Anaerobic decomposition occurs in the absence of oxygen owing to larger depth of the tank.

The water then moves to a facultative pond, where the retention time is three to six days.

A combination of both anaerobic and aerobic processes is used here.

The decreased depth of the pond helps the aerobic reactions to start here.

Finally, grey water moves to maturation ponds, where pathogens are removed in the presence of oxygen and sunlight.

The retention time here is three to five days. Three maturation ponds have been made in Bajar Bhogaon to increase the retention time and surface area of the pond.

This allows for longer exposure of wastewater to sunlight and enables the movement of water for better pathogen removal.

The treated water from the maturation pond is used for irrigation and groundwater recharge in both the villages.

Jainapur, owing to shortage of land, has made three L-shaped ponds.

The capacity of the Bajar Bhogaon and Jainapur waste-stabilization ponds is 30,000 litres per day (L/d) and 60,000 L/d respectively.

The fund used for the construction of both the grey water treatment systems has been sanctioned under Swachh Bharat Mission.

Bajar Bhogaon and Jainapur were sanctioned Rs 9.90 lakh and Rs 10.71 lakh respectively by the District Water and Sanitation Mission Department, Zila Parishad Kolhapur.

Construction work in both the villages was completed through tendering processes in 2018-19.

Jainapur had to transport grey water through a 12-km-long underground pipeline. This was done through the Gram Panchayat under Member of Legislative Assembly Local Area Development funds.

The operation and maintenance of treatment systems is done by the respective Gram Panchayat under the Gram Panchayat funds. The cost estimate of annual cleaning of a system is around Rs 0.5-0.7 lakh per annum.

Cleaning of the conveyance system for the entire village is around Rs 4 lakh per annum.

Residents of both villages can now get free irrigation water. Previously, they had to pay private parties for this. The cost of buying the water was as high as 20 per cent of their agricultural produce.

Bajar Bhogaon now plans to spend Rs 2 lakh to install solar pumps to reduce the energy cost towards pumping water into agricultural fields. Both villages are planning to treat the maximum possible grey water that is generated.

Ganpati Katkar, 60, Bajar Bhogaon village

This is a part of  Water Compendium  published by the Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi

We are a voice to you; you have been a support to us. Together we build journalism that is independent, credible and fearless. You can further help us by making a donation. This will mean a lot for our ability to bring you news, perspectives and analysis from the ground so that we can make change together.

Comments are moderated and will be published only after the site moderator’s approval. Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name. Selected comments may also be used in the ‘Letters’ section of the Down To Earth print edition.

Down To Earth is a product of our commitment to make changes in the way we manage our environment, protect health and secure livelihoods and economic security for all. We believe strongly that we can and must do things differently. Our aim is to bring you news, perspectives and knowledge to prepare you to change the world. We believe information is a powerful driver for the new tomorrow.

© Copyright Down To Earth 2022. All rights reserved.