One-stop resource centres to help Delhiites get their homes ready for rainwater harvesting will soon be opened by the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) as a part of its campaign to conserve water.
The DJB will be opening three ‘rain centres’ in Dwarka, R.K. Puram and Lajpat Nagar within 15 days, with plans to set up centres to show how the rainwater harvesting system works at eight other locations.
“The three rain centres are ready and we will be opening them in 10 to 15 days. Our aim is to get all the information about how rainwater harvesting works and why it is important to the public. The plan is to have one centre in each of the 11 districts,” said Kapil Mishra, chairperson of the DJB.
All the information
At these centres, visitors will get all the information about how to install rainwater harvesting systems in their homes, through booklets and interaction with resource persons.
They will also tell visitors who to approach for getting the structure installed.
At the eight ‘pilot’ centres, the design of the harvesting structures will be demonstrated, said DJB CEO Keshav Chandra.
The DJB’s new rainwater harvesting policy, which was finalised recently, includes a simplified mechanism that will make it easier to install. Earlier, buildings needed to have a borewell, and direct the water into the aquifer.
Simplified design
“But, in the name of rainwater harvesting, many people would extract water from the borewell. The new design is simpler. It is based on how much water is collected on the roof,” said Mr. Chandra.
The water collected on the roof will be directed to a pit, which will be lined to prevent collapse. There will be a small filtration medium at the bottom of the pit, which will have to be covered.
A lot of potential
On an average, Delhi gets 714mm of rainfall every year, and as per the DJB’s Draft Water Policy, the potential from rain water runoff from all surfaces is 140 million gallons per day (MGD).
With the city’s daily production peaking at 900 MGD and total demand being estimated at 1,080 MGD, harvesting rain water could provide some relief.
