Failure to get the water required for a six-acre farm even after drilling 28 borewells forced Michael Sadananda Baptist, a mechanical engineer, to take up research on rainwater harvesting.
His quest to understand ways to conserve rainwater resulted in setting up the Rainy Research and Innovation Factory with friends and family members. Now, the firm, after decades of research and innovations in the field, has come up with suggestions for the State government and the public to resolve the water crisis during the tough days of drought.
Mr. Baptist, briefing a team of journalists, that visited his research centre at Hadihalli in Chikkamagaluru taluk, explained the effective models that help the public conserve large quantities of rainwater.
The firm also has workable models to recharge borewells in agricultural fields and to harvest rainwater in large structures. The investment in research and development by the firm has resulted in patents for filters that it developed.
Workable models
Mr. Baptist’s in-depth research into making rainwater harvesting affordable and easy helped the firm develop models suitable for individual households.
Chikkamagaluru Karnataka 23/05/24 Michael Sadananda Baptist, founder of Rainy Research and Innovation Factory, has developed many models to harvest rainwater and recharge borewells. | Photo Credit: SATHISH G.T.
“A family with a house built on 1,200 sqft (30x40 sft) of area can have a rooftop rainwater harvesting system by investing around ₹16,000 to ₹18,000. In the case of a 2,400 sqft (60x40 sft), the amount will be between ₹28,000 and ₹35,000, including the filters. This is the right time to have the system in place, as it can help conserve the water in the coming rainy season,” he said.
For recharging borewells, the firm has developed V-Wire injection well technology. This technology had been implemented to recharge over 650 borewells of the Social Welfare Department. “This can be taken up on a large scale to recharge government borewells if the State shows interest”, he said.
The firm has exhibited all the models it developed at its research centre. “We are not letting a drop of water go out of our campus. Besides, we are providing water for farmers in Hadihalli as well,” he said.
GST on equipment
He stressed the need to bring down the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on rainwater harvesting equipment from 18% to 5%. “The GST is very high. The customers will get benefits if the tax is reduced. Such a move will encourage the public to have the system in place,” he said.
