No one can help me as much as I can!

 Rural communities have always strived to be closer to nature and work in harmony with it.

I was usually talking to one of our operators, Bhagwant Singh(22) from Rajkiyawas, Rajasthan about the functioning of our purification plant there. He was relating how the quality of water and its availability has always been a challenge in Rajasthan. He goes to say people are happy to get safe drinking water round the clock now.

Bhagwant talks of times his parents struggled for water.

I was curiously listening to him and could not hold back myself and said, "What do you do to conserve water"? To my surprise he immediately sent me pictures of the self-made rainwater harvesting storage tank and set up his father has built to store water. Now, this got me excited and caught my attention. He said, "My father was farsighted and believed in helping oneself and others. He was very clear about solving his own issues. If I recall his words, he said, "Amtanirbhar Bano, khud raste dhoondo aur aage badho, Isse Apna aur dusro ka bhala Karo". I am happy my father showed me the way our national leaders are now talking".

I could recall what I recently read about Gandhiji who said,

 "The future depends on what we do in the present".

Bhagwant also agreed to it and goes on to say, “It’s been 20 years since we have rainwater harvesting system at home. The storage tank is 8 feet deep and stores around 11000 litres of water which my family uses for cleaning and bathing. We are prepared as you never know when we runoff water so it's essential to conserve every drop of rainfall. This year, we were able to store 8000 litres of rainwater and have utilised 3000 litres till now".

He says his mother used to say, "Bharish ka pani bhagwan ka arshivad hai toh use shambhal ke rakhna chaiye and zarurat padne pe logo ko baatna bhi chaiye". So his family also help the community members when they need water.

Towards the end of the call, I was so motivated and happy to know there is so much to learn from everyone. I smiled and told Bhagwant that I will be sharing this with all so each one of us can work towards being #Atmanirbhar and #LocalseVocal.

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Empathy matters in the midst of pandemic

 

Franchisee- Rewari, Haryana

The global pandemic has brought changes in various aspects of our lives. In these testing times, it is essential to show empathy to others and engage in helpful actions. Empathy simply means understanding the situations and emotions of the person of what he/she is experiencing. 

Recently conversing with our Franchisee Nitesh Bansal from Rewari location helped me to pen down his experiences of supporting others who were struggling at the time of complete lockdown in the nation. 

Franchisee Nitesh began his entrepreneurship journey on 20 March 2015. The franchisee model is one of the models of Piramal Sarvajal that leverages the entrepreneurial skills of local people with their technology and equipment. With the support of water.org’s small financing to the franchisee, the plant was implemented to provide affordable, accessible and safe drinking water. 

When asked about the situations at the beginning of the lockdown he shared “I involved myself in the delivery as people’s trust for services was imperative. My employees are important to me as they have always been there in all ups and downs. I provided 6 layered masks for their safety. We started sanitising the camper in front of our consumers to maintain transparency among them.”

Figure 1 Vehicles are regularly being sanitised

“Mai bas yahi chahta tha ki is samay mai bhi mere client aur customer ko acchi se acchi service mile aur koi rukawat na aaye” All I wanted was to give better services to my client and customers without any hindrance. Total of 68 customers are currently taking the services of Sarvajal. 

They maintained and shared all precautionary measures provided in the health guideline; sanitising the ATM all the time, reminding people to maintain social distancing, washing hands and utensils, wearing masks. He narrates when the situation became worst and led to a shutdown; I got permission from the District Collector to continue with the services. 

“The greatest good is what we do for one another” - Mother Theresa

By looking at the conditions of nearby labourers travelling to their native place led him to take initiatives for them. “As Sevabhaav, I decided to provide free water. “Jitne bhi bahar ke labour the, unko kai din tak free jal seva humne di thi”. I get it made 2000 masks and spent from my pocket, later distributed to all who needed that time.” 

Figure 2 (2000) masks distributed to the migrant labours

Figure 3 The plant is regularly sanitised and campers are cleaned every day

He shared  "if you are in a financial position to help others then reach out however you can, supporting others can give a sense of empowerment.”

Show concern, be conscious and do not maintain emotional distancing with people. 

#beaware #besafe 

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