Sivani Piped Water

Supply System,
District Kanker,
Chhattisgarh

Sumitra Mandavi, a 40-year- WAI and Samarthan, five piped water supply
old woman, lives in Sivani (PWS) schemes were made operational in
gram panchayat, in Gond Sivani gram panchayat—two schemes in
tribe-dominated village Sivani started in 2017 and 2018,
Durgukondal block of Kanker, covered 48 households; and three schemes in
Chhattisgarh. She has been witnessing village Goyenda, of which two started in 2017
the marvel of flowing tap water for the and one in 2018, covered 37 households.
last three years. Earlier, the households
in this village depended on a single public
PIPED WATER SUPPLY AS PART
hand pump. In the summers, the water
OF A COMPREHENSIVE WASH
level often went below the pumping levels
PROGRAMME
of the hand pump, further limiting their Enabling access to piped drinking
access to adequate water supply. water within the premises is part of a
comprehensive WASH programme being
In the 12-household habitation of Aampara in
implemented by WAI–Samarthan in Kanker
Sivani village, the very idea of water gushing
district since 2015 to pilot diverse models
out of a tap was a distant dream till just a few
of piped water supply schemes, toilets,
years ago. As the houses in the habitation
handwashing stations, and wastewater
were located at a distance from each other, a
treatment methods. On the one hand, WAI
village-level piped water supply scheme was
and Samarthan advocated with the Chief
unviable.
Executive Officer, Zilla Parishad to implement
Sumitra’s situation improved as a result piped water supply systems in rural areas.
of WaterAid India (WAI) and its partner, On the other hand, they also held discussions
Samarthan’s initiative to ensure that every with the communities on improving their
household in the area had access to clean understanding so as to achieve drinking
water at their doorstep. With support from water security with regard to quantity and
quality.
Around the same time, the Public Health and the programme on open defecation free
and Engineering Department (PHED) in (ODF) sustainability had led to widespread
Chhattisgarh was also replacing hand behaviour change, inducing communities with
pumps (which were considered to be low a history of open defecation to adopt new
yielding and unsustainable) with mini piped habits. While leach pit toilets were promoted
water schemes, using existing boreholes, in Sivani, bio-toilets were the appropriate
wherever possible, or new ones. The gram choice in other gram panchayats due to the
panchayats had been building their own rocky or water-logged terrain, which is not
mini power pump schemes with stand posts suited for twin leach pit toilets. Additionally,
for several years, with the support of PHED. the community soon realised that piped water
With some initial support and setting up of was important because toilets without water
the piped water schemes, the systems were supply were ineffective and became unused
handed over to the gram panchayats or the over a period of time.
constitutionally mandated Village Water and
Thus, it was decided to implement a
Sanitation Committees (VWSCs) for operations
habitation level piped water supply scheme.
and maintenance (O&M). However, in most
WAI and Samarthan2 worked on leveraging
villages, VWSCs were more or less non-
government funds as well as adopting
functional and the system would fall into
a demand-driven approach to facilitate
disrepair in no time.
participatory decision making and ownership
at all levels. It was also observed that in
HABITATION LEVEL PIPED WATER
Sivani gram panchayat, the VWSC focussed
SUPPLY SCHEME AT SIVANI
on sanitation more than water supply. Hence,
Until 2015, the water supply schemes in Sivani
scheme-level Peyjal Prabandhan Samitis
gram panchayat were based on groundwater
(drinking water management committees)
sources, such as hand pumps and open
were constituted at the habitation level.
wells. At Sivani1, the gram panchayat decided
The peyjal samiti draws on self help groups3
that the dispersed settlement pattern was a
(SHGs) for its membership and comprises
challenge for piped water supply coverage
only women who are part of the SHG. There
and that the only option was to provide small
is social capital built around SHGs, and this
electric motorised power pumps drawing
was tapped for work on the PWS scheme.
water from boreholes, with an overhead
The SHG functionaries were already trained
tank and domestic water connections at the
to manage accounts, and as members of the
individual habitation level.
peyjal samiti, they were additionally trained
At the same time, WAI and Samarthan had
on various aspects of piped water supply,
been working on generating a demand
operations, management, water quality
for toilets, and on their design in terms of
testing etc. These samitis were provided
quality, convenience, and privacy. The daily
with continuous support in terms of creating
lives of the community had been impacted

1
Sivani gram panchayat has nine habitations about 1-2 km away from each other.
2
Drinking water security is a core area of their work and they have been working in Chhattisgarh since 2004.
3
Since August 2017, WAI–Samarthan has adopted the strategy of training SHG women in its 25 project panchayats to manage PWS.
Water supply system at household level

awareness, training, and handholding on Funds to the tune of INR 8.31 lakh were
various aspects of drinking water supply and leveraged from Sivani gram panchayat for full
sanitation; such as planning, implementation, financing of the capital costs for constructing
management, as well as O&M. Efforts were the PWS. Moreover, connection charges for
made to ensure that the gram panchayat households below the poverty line (BPL) were
as well as the peyjal samiti developed an waived off.
understanding of the rural drinking water
At Aampara, water from the hand pump,
supply and sanitation programmes, and were
which was converted into a tubewell through
empowered to shoulder their responsibilities.
deepening, is being pumped into a 1,000
The project ensured equity in access to the
litre capacity overhead storage tank using
scheme in all villages.
a 1HP (horse power) submersible pump
The committee managed the operations and through a rising main. Before going ahead
finances of the system, fixing and collection with the project, it was ensured that the
of tariffs, and raising demand with the gram tubewell yielded fluoride-free drinking water.
panchayat about the system’s faults and Water from the overhead tank is supplied by
repairs. The peyjal samiti was also involved gravity to the habitation through a 1.13km
in selecting the borewell, its preparation, distribution network and a stand post. The
cleaning, and selection of the location to frequency of water distribution is decided by
install an overhead storage tank. They the Peyjal Prabandhan Samiti. In most of the
were also responsible for ensuring proper habitations, water is supplied for two hours
construction and for the laying of pipelines each in the morning and evening. However,
from the overhead storage tank to the water supply is restricted further during
households. summers.
The Aampara habitation now has 100 per follow suit. Book keeping is maintained by the
cent tap connectivity through groundwater peyjal samiti and the income and expenditure
for drinking and domestic purposes. Sumitra for water supply is systematically tracked.
has two tap connections; one in her toilet and Training was provided at Aampara habitation
one in her kitchen. She is relieved that she no on community hygiene practices, safe
longer has to run around to collect water, and drinking water, sanitation, safe handling of
can focus on productive work instead. water, protection of drinking water sources,
and operation of the piped water supply
THRUST ON SOLAR-BASED PIPED scheme.
WATER SYSTEMS
The cost of recovery for O&M goes towards
As per the report on the Saubhagya website4;
payment of electricity charges for running the
as of 31 March 2019, all the villages in Kanker
system; between INR 100 to INR 200 a month
have been electrified. Only 18,734 (2.44 per
per habitation, on an average. Minor repairs
cent) households in the state are yet to be
are done by the committee, while major costs
connected to the grid. The state not only
for repairs are borne by the gram panchayat.
boasts of a good record on electrification,
Fund mobilisation is done by PHED for major
but has also taken a lead5 in installing solar
repairs, following a request by the gram
pumps for rural water supply. This is reflected
panchayat.
in the Sivani gram panchayat, where, in some
of the piped water supply systems, solar The scheme does not hire an operator and
powered pumps have been introduced. this has reduced their costs. The woman who
resides next to the system takes responsibility
One solar pump and four power pumps were
for its operation. In her absence, the
installed in five habitations, while the pipeline
responsibility is passed on to others. The
has been extended to supply piped water to
valve needs to be operated in case of solar-
93 households6. In all the five habitations,
based systems, whereas for electricity-based
peyjal samitis were set up at the scheme
systems, the work is simpler and involves just
level to handle the O&M for the power pump,
switching the system on.
stand posts, and piped water supply.

On an average, INR 25 is collected per CASE OF GOYENDA VILLAGE:

household per month towards O&M. The INTERCONNECTED SYSTEM OF
decision regarding the user charge was left SOLAR AND ELECTRIC-BASED PWS
to the peyjal samiti and they decided on INR The Ganga Peyjal Prabhandhan Samiti was
20 in some habitations such as Aampara, and set up in Goyenda village in Sivani gram
INR 30 in others. Some committees, such panchayat in 2018 with the support of WAI
as in Sivani main village, have set up a bank and Samarthan. There are twelve households
account and others like in Aampara, plan to that get piped water supply from the solar-

4
https://saubhagya.gov.in/
5
Chhattisgarh has been doing well in the country in the front of providing domestic water connections under the National
Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP). The state also had a major achievement when it was at the forefront at the
countrywide level for installing solar pumps. The CREDA is currently working on solar-based mini piped water supply systems
6
PWS schemes in Sivani gram panchayat – two schemes in village Sivani (Nov 2017 & March 2019) covering a total of 56
households; three schemes in village Goyenda (Feb 2018, Nov 2018, March 2019) covering 37 households
The piped water scheme at Sivani main village

based water pumping scheme. Solar energy tapping water using electricity-based water
for water pumping based on photovoltaic pumping systems.
(PV) technology that converts solar energy
Before the commencement of the scheme,
into electrical energy to run a DC or AC
a ‘yield’ test was done using a submersible
motor-based water pump is emerging as an
pump and generation set. The scheme was
alternative to conventional electricity and
sanctioned only after it was clear that the
diesel based pumping systems in the district
yield was above the desired limit of 2,800
and state at large.
litres per hour. Technical sanction for a
A single phase 1HP solar powered solar-based scheme was accorded by the
submersible pump was installed in a high technical agency, Chhattisgarh Renewable
yielding borewell that had a hand pump Energy Development Agency (CREDA), while
earlier. Pumped water is stored in a 2,000 the administrative sanction was provided by
litre raised tank, which has been elevated to the gram panchayat. In the electricity-based
a height of three metres to give sufficient systems, normally the Rural Water Supply
head for the distribution system. Water Division under the Zilla Parishad or PHED
supply is provided to each house through a provides technical sanctions. In this case,
tap, and a stand post has been constructed CREDA used pre-fabricated steel structures
right below the overhead tank. Water supply and pre-cast RCC foundation blocks and the
from the tank is provided twice a day for system was installed in a week’s time.
two hours each in the morning and evening.
An innovation in the system is that all the
The committee decided that each household
three schemes have been interconnected
should pay INR 30 per month as O&M
with each other through valves. Should
charges. Subsequently, between (2019, two
any of them fail, the other two are used for
more PWS were set up in the village, both
providing water to the households. If the
The green dot represents a colour code used by WAI and Samarthan to categorise houses, based on toilet
availability and usage; doorposts were painted with a green dot if they had, and used, toilets; red if they lacked
a toilet; yellow if they had but did not use toilets; and black for households that refused to make a toilet

solar pump does not function due to cloudy long run as the system is powered by solar
weather, the valve is adjusted so that water energy. As of now, annual maintenance for
is supplied from the electricity-based system. the first five years of the solar water pumping
Likewise, when electric supply is unavailable, system is provided free by the manufacturer,
water is accessed through the solar-based but this does not cover all the spare parts.
pumping system. There have been instances in nearby villages
where the solar panel was damaged and
The secretary of the Ganga Peyjal Prabandhan
the complaint to the block office was not
Samiti in Goyenda ensures operation of the
attended for weeks. Tuleshwari also feels that
scheme and recovery of user charges from
better reserves may help the system become
all the user households. The households also
financially sustainable over time.
paid a one-time charge of INR 100 to join the
scheme, which was deposited in the bank. These are pure solar-based systems and not
dual pump-based water supply schemes
“Our peyjal samiti had set the user charges
that can be either powered by conventional
higher, at INR 30 a month, as compared to
electricity or solar energy. “The scheme is very
the other two samitis who were charging
useful, economical, eco-friendly and popular.
INR 20 per month. The users soon raised an
The users of the other piped water supply
objection and we had to lower the charges to
(electricity-based) scheme are attracted to
INR 20 a month,” says 22-year-old Tuleshwari
the solar-based scheme considering its zero
Koliyaya, Secretary, Ganga Peyjal Prabandhan
electricity charges,” Tuleshwari pointed out.
Samiti. She has, however, been pointing
out the need to enhance the user charges The peyjal samiti regularly monitors and
anticipating higher costs of repair in the assesses the functioning of the scheme.
Although the water table and yield are not
monitored as of now, the water quality is
monitored twice a year. The samiti also
monitors leakages and wastage in water use.
The users are advised to mend their ways,
but no system of fines has been instituted
yet. There is a need to reconstitute and build
the capacities of the VWSCs through training
sessions, so that their role in service provision
gets institutionalised.

The decision to use solar-based technology

was taken by the state implementing
agencies, such as CREDA after a push
from NITI Aayog. In the long run, solar-
based systems are as economically viable
as conventional electricity or diesel-based
systems, but as of now the supply chain
for repair and procurement of spare parts
is poor. The government needs to give
The solar-based water pumping scheme at Goyenda
greater incentives for photovoltaic pumping,
and policy initiatives are needed for the
the village action plan prepared by the
promotion of solar water pumping.
gram panchayats. It played a crucial role
Samarthan had some reservations about in ensuring that the gram panchayats get
solar-based pumping, considering its high requisite clearances and permissions from all
initial costs. They have been pushing for authorities at various levels.
conventional electricity-based water pumping
The PHED engineers plan and design
systems to improve coverage of piped water
schemes, while private contractors implement
supply schemes.
them. After construction, they hand over
HANDHOLDING SUPPORT TO the scheme to the gram panchayat and
DISTRICT WATER AND SANITATION the scheme is run by the peyjal samiti.
MISSION (DWSM) Samarthan plays a key role in coordinating
with department officers in charge of rural
Samarthan has been serving as an extended
water supply and sanitation. WAI and
delivery arm of the District Water and
Samarthan rely on this initial briefing as a
Sanitation Mission (DWSM) on handholding
critical support arrangement that ensures the
support, and acts as a link between DWSM
functioning of the schemes. So far, 16 peyjal
and the gram panchayats, peyjal samitis and
samitis have been set up in Kanker to manage
village communities. It has been guiding
piped water schemes. Samarthan is also
the peyjal samitis in implementing and
instrumental in arranging training courses on
monitoring the work related to water supply
various aspects of water and sanitation at the
schemes and sanitation, as envisaged in
block, district, and state levels for members CONCLUSION
of peyjal samitis, gram panchayats, PHED
etc. Awareness generation and development The five PWS schemes operational at the

communication activities were also taken up habitation level in Sivani gram panchayat

with gram panchayat, peyjal samiti members through engagement of SHG women seem

as well as the village community. encouraging but more work needs to be

done on institutional aspects, like opening
THRUST ON WATER QUALITY of bank accounts and encouraging people to

Even though Kanker receives plenty of create a corpus through one-time payment

rainfall, it is erratic and groundwater for meeting major and minor repairs. While

contaminants—fluoride (>1.5 mg/l), iron the monthly tariff amount should be based

(>1.0 mg/l), nitrate (>45 mg/l)—are present on the user’s ability to pay, the corpus should

in many gram panchayats. Therefore, water be enough to meet the day-to-day operation

quality testing was conducted in Sivani costs.

gram panchayat to identify quality-related

problems, notably fluoride presence in
drinking water. Women have been trained
to use field test kits for testing water. Water
provided by the piped water supply system
is not treated, but the tank is cleaned using
bleaching powder on a bi-monthly basis.
Moreover, groundwater levels have been
dropping in the area and source sustainability
is a concern. The project, therefore, includes
the component of rainwater harvesting at
both, the household and community level, to
make the scheme sustainable.