Water ATMs may help in bridging safe water gap

Water ATMs may help in bridging safe water gap

News:

1. The government is increasingly starting to accept small water enterprises such as water ATMs and community purification plants as an alternative solution to the safe drinking water challenge.
2. Important Facts:
3. In 2010, the United Nations declared access to clean drinking water as a human right, however with 82 crore people who still do not have access to piped water and 70% of water in the country contaminated by pollutants
4. In 2010, the United Nations declared access to clean drinking water as a human right.
5. Community water purification plants have grown from less than 12,000 in 2014 to almost 50,000 in 2018, according to the SWN, as they have been incorporated into government planning.
6. To reach the government’s Har Ghar Jal target of 100% piped water by 2030, almost ₹5 lakh crore of infrastructure investment will be required, says government data.
7. SWN estimates that if the government is willing to spend less than 10% of that amount on small water enterprises, it could provide safe drinking water at a fraction of the cost.
8. Findings of Indices:

• A recent report by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) pointed out that only 18% of the rural population has access to potable piped water, failing to meet the 2017 target of 50%.
• India is ranked at 120 out of 122 countries on the Water Quality Index, said Niti Aayog, adding that 70% of the country’s water supply is contaminated.
• A 2017 report by WaterAid India, titled “Wild Water: The State of the World’s Water”, stated that around 63 million of India’s 833 million rural population has no access to clean drinking water.
• A new report by Safe Water Network (SWN) says the government needs to spend ₹44,000 crore on 2.2 lakh small water enterprises to provide safe drinking water to about 37 crore people, mostly in urban slums where piped water infrastructure is difficult to build, and in rural areas with contaminated water sources.

9. About Water ATMs:

• A water ATM is like a vending machine that provides clean drinking water 24 hours a day.
• The water ATM can be automatic with a coin or smart card, or manual essentially, it’s a community RO.
• It is powered by solar energy, integrated with reverse osmosis (RO) and ultrafiltration units with reduced operational costs.