TPRF to Fund Construction of Bore Wells in Indian Villages

Access to water, curtailment of disease are among expected outcomes

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 3, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Prem Rawat Foundation (TPRF) is funding the construction of bore wells in villages in Kadapa, India, in order to address a range of problems plaguing residents in some of the region's most remote communities.

TPRF awarded US$16,756 to the Sri K. Pitchi Reddy Educational and Welfare Society (SPREAWS) for the construction of 15 wells that will serve an estimated 7,500 families in Andhra Pradesh, initially alleviating the daily burden on residents of carrying water long distances from unprotected sources. Long-term, the wells are seen as aids to economic development and the curtailment of water-borne diseases.

"Access to clean water is a central focus of TPRF's humanitarian aid program," says TPRF President, Linda Pascotto. "The installation of these wells in Andhra Pradesh will not only provide a convenient supply of safe, fresh water to these people, it will impact their overall health and future."

SPREAWS President C.J. Sajid Hussain says the lack of available drinking water in the targeted villages has led to widespread indifference to hygiene. "If new bore wells are installed in the region," he says, "they will not only ameliorate the water problem but help eradicate disease."

The bore wells, he says, will eliminate the need for village women to walk long distances over often difficult terrain to fetch water, which will in turn give them more time to work to increase household income. Economic improvement is also currently crippled because much of the villagers' earnings must be spent on medical services to treat water-borne diseases from contaminated water sources.

SPREAWS will also instigate follow-up programs in each village.

"The installation stage of a rural water supply program is very easily achieved compared with accomplishing sustained maintenance," Hussain reports. "The long-term success of any water program depends almost entirely on effective maintenance, and yet it is an aspect which is very often neglected."

Once wells built with TPRF support are up and running, he says, locals will be trained to do simple maintenance, and SPREAWS staff will be assigned to visit the sites to make sure the wells stay operational and uncontaminated. Plans also call for the use of flip charts, drawings and photographs to encourage villagers to pay attention to personal hygiene and domestic sanitation.

About The Prem Rawat Foundation (TPRF)

The Prem Rawat Foundation promotes Prem Rawat's message of peace and his vision of addressing fundamental human needs so that people everywhere can live with dignity, peace and prosperity. For more information, visit: www.tprf.org.

SOURCE The Prem Rawat Foundation