Hyderabad: Rainwater from rooftops, residential complexes and office spaces, which is usually let off on roads or drains, is wreaking havoc and is one of the primary causes of water stagnation.
“The drains aren’t built to handle the stormwater and when silt mixed with leaves, garbage and other waste enters them, they get clogged and water overflows on the roads,” said a senior official from Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC).
“It is not that people don’t know this, but awareness about alternatives is low and so is the budget allocation for (rainwater) harvesting,” the official added.
While harvesting pits help in replenishing the city’s groundwater, storing water in sumps is also a good idea as it can be used almost immediately. If one is not sure about rainwater harvesting pits, one can build reuse tanks of 15,000-20,000 litres capacity with a filter.
“The filter costs not more than Rs 1,000. Hyderabad has around 600-800 mm of rains and with a rooftop of 300 sq. mt, the entire tank can be filled. In my house, we don’t use municipal water for around two-three months every year and the HMWS&SB people had even noticed it as the meter had not recorded usage,” said Ramanjaneyulu G.V., director at Center for Sustainable Agriculture who has a 50,000 litre capacity reuse tank in his house.
Mr Ramanjaneyulu had started harvesting rainwater around eight years ago and hasn’t had to call for a water tanker since then.
