July 02, 2019 03:50 pm | Updated 03:50 pm IST

A four-pronged strategy to conserve water

V.K. Ravi Raja is trying out four types of rainwater harvesting concepts at his house in Rajakilpakkam, with noticeable success

V . K. Ravi Raja, a wealth manager by profession who treats water as a wealth, has gone to great lengths to ensure he is stocked up sufficiently on this natural resource.

His house in Vasuki Street, Rajakilpakkam, is testimony to this; four types of rainwater harvesting systems are at the ready, waiting to conserve water when the skies open up. What is significant is that in these water-starved times, V.K. Ravi Raja declares that he does not have to look beyond his house for water.

“I moved into this house in 2009; I constructed an underground sump with a capacity of more than 10,000 litres to store water. From the terrace, through rainwater harvesting pipes and filters, rainwater is stored in the sump,” says V. K. Ravi Raja.

Another rainwater harvesting concept that he has implemented on the premises of his home is direct borewell recharge concept.

“Under the direct borewell recharge concept, I have constructed a two-feet-wide harvesting pit, which collectes rainwater through stainless steel round-holed drains. In the pit, the protruding borewell pipes have multiple holes to ensure that ‘the side water’ is not wasted. Besides, a nylon mesh has been wrapped around a part of the borewell pipe to protect it from dust and sand. The dust and sand get filtered. This concept is very popular in Andhra Pradesh and Telanganna,” he says.

The borewell is 120 feet deep.

Ravi Raja also points out that he has constructed a couple of mini recharge wells (called 'Urai Kinaru' in Tamil), each of which is six-feet deep. Near the gate, a squared mesh with holes on the bottom has been kept to catch the rainwater. Not a single drop of water goes outside the premises of my home, he notes.

Atop the overhead tank on the terrace, Ravi Raja has built three rainwater harvesting systems. The centrally-located harvesting system has a sloped surface and also holes for the rainwater to slide and fall in. The first and the second rainwater harvesting system systems are inter-connected; together, they can store up to 4,500 litres at a time. And the last one can store up to 3,000 litres of water at a time. The water from the first and second pits is used for drinking purposes through a pipe connected to a tap in the kitchen. The dust entering the pit through the holes is filtered with a white cloth, whic Ravi Raja says is replaced regularly.

“A filtering pipe is attached to the tap that has water flowing in from the first and second harvesting systems. This water is used for drinking. The water from the last pit is used for washing and other purposes. The systems are cleaned regularly,” says Ravi Raja.

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