Presented below are some design ideas in domestic Water Harvesting. The Dimensions are indicative and will vary as per local conditions and situation.

Above is a typical Domestic Water Harvesting Design for a terrace of 2500 Sq ft, with 800 mm of annual rainfall. This part of the article should be read in conjunction with Manohar Khushalani’s interview to ANI which can be read on this link

Manohar Khushalani recommends Water Harvesting at Community Level: ANI / Pioneer / New Indian Express / NDTV

Below are photographs of the outlets on the terrace.  In the photograph, the one on the right is the existing drain pipe. The one on the left is the new drain hole connected to Water Harvesting Structure.

As you can see the terrace is dirty. So block the left outlet. So that dirty water does not go to Water Harvesting Structure, but flows out side to street from the right outlet.

Now clean the terrace, which should preferably be done before the monsoons.

After the first rain, block the drain on the right side and open the left outlet so that rain flows through it to the Water Harvesting Structure for rest of the season.

All the drains from higher terraces will also be diverted like this to the structure

Finally all pipes drop their rainwater to the inlet of water harvesting structure. The video below shows the final route:

Finally watch the exhilarating experience of water cascading into your Water Harvesting Structure as you recharge Mother Earth so that it can quench the thirst of your grandchildren. Appropriately, in this video, below, you will hear the voice of a little girl crying out for her grandmother “Naani!! Naani!!”

Watch Rain Water Cascading Into the Womb of Mother Earth

Normally for a properly maintained domestic water harvesting pit a desilting tank is not required. For large capacity pits for societies and institutions see the details of a desilting tank on the next article in this seties

Water Harvesting: Desilting Tank for removal of suspended impurities | Manohar Khushalani

If there is a space crunch in installing a filter pit at your location, you can use a pipe filter  but the filter shown is far far better

Water Harvesting: Pipe Filters where there is a space crunch | Manohar Khushalani

Prof. Manohar Khushalani appeared live in a program anchored by the charming Gargi Rawat, on the NDTV series, WE THE PEOPLE. with Co-panelists Raghav Chadha and VK Madhavan. There were also Videocons with Medha Patkar an Other from Chennai.

On We The People we talked about an an issue that concerns everyone – India’s impending water emergency. The crisis is all around us. Chennai is facing the worst water crisis it has ever seen. With lakhs of people depending on private water tankers as taps go dry, establishments have had to be shut down, children are skipping school and lining up for water. And while Chennai is the largest city facing a water crisis right now, there’s a drought like situation in almost half the country. Parts of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh too are reeling under the crisis. On this show, panelists talked about steps we can take to prevent an impending water emergency.

If you are really worried about the Water Crisis in India don’t miss this program. Click on the link below. It was telecast at 6pm Saturday, 29th June, 2019

Prof. Manohar Khushalani, Editor, OneVorld, was interviewed extensively by the wire service, ANI, on the looming Water crisis in India. His interview forms part of it’s report circulated to all newspapers and news media in India and abroad.

He advocated water harvesting at community and individual level, quoting his own example, about how he built his own water harvesting in his home, as far back as 2003

No drinking water will be available by 2030 if we don’t conserve now: Report

The government is depending upon the desalination in Chennai which is very expensive also however they forget that the earth is a limited planet and oceans will dry. What will we leave for our children and grandchildren? We may have a lot of money but we cannot ask our children to drink money instead of water. Using ocean water and desalination is not the solution but water harvesting is” said former director of National Water Academy Professor Manohar Khushalani.

“It is a collective responsibility of the government and people of the country to save water and contribute to increasing the groundwater levels,” he added.

Mr Khushalani is presently working as professor in Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology Delhi and has also authored books ”Irrigation Practice and Design in five volumes”. (Published by Oxford & IBH Sponsored by NBT)

“It is not very difficult and expensive to harvest rainwater. One can easily do it commonly in group housing societies or individually. We will just have to make our heart little bigger and more responsible to be thinking about our next generation,” the professor told ANI.

He has made a water harvesting structure inside his residence, in which he has been harvesting rainwater since 2003, helping the raise the groundwater level in his area.

“I made this water harvesting structure in 2003 when my sixty feet deep tube well dried up. I decided to put all rain water collected on my terrace into it. There are two conditions in doing rainwater harvesting. Number one, first rainwater should not go into it, secondly filtered water should go into the ground otherwise it will contaminate the groundwater. The rainwater which is collected on my terrace flows through a pipe which is connected to the bore. After sixty feet, the soil filters the water by itself. The water which falls from the terrace or from height should be harvested but not the water on the roads during rains because it carries lots of dirt with it which may lead to groundwater contamination,” he said.

Mr Khushalani further suggested that the regions which are facing drought should not do farming of sugarcane as it absorbs a lot of groundwater. “By becoming aware today we can avert the danger tomorrow,” he concluded.

To see the original report click on the link below

Manohar Khushalani Recommends Water Harvesting

The ANI report has been featured in a large number of newspapers such as Pioneer, NDTV, First Post, New Indian Express.

https://www.aninews.in/news/national/general-news/no-drinking-water-will-be-available-by-2030-if-we-dont-conserve-now-report20190620014626/

http://www.newindianexpress.com/nation/2019/jun/20/no-drinking-water-will-be-available-by-2030-if-we-dont-conserve-now-1992810.html

http://www.pioneernews.in/21-indian-cities-will-run-out-of-groundwater-by-2020-report

https://www.firstpost.com/india/indias-metro-cities-will-run-out-of-groundwater-in-next-10-yrs-claims-niti-ayog-report-40-populace-will-have-no-access-to-drinking-water-by-2030-6850271.html

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/21-indian-cities-will-run-out-of-groundwater-by-2020-report-2056129