ONGC provides Water ATMs, solar-powered toilets in AP villages

As a part of its Corporate Social Responsibility and Swachh Bharat Campaign, the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) Rajahmundry Asset has installed Water ATMs and pre-fabricated solar toilets.

Through its Swachh Jaldhara initiative, more than 39,000 rural families in 13 villages in East, West Godavari and Krishna districts would be getting purified water at no cost by inserting a smart card into Water ATM, says D M R Sekhar, Executive Director, ONGC Rajahmundry Asset. The Water ATMs are placed in distant places where water is salty, not drinkable, and whose Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) are very high.

TDS refers to inorganic and small amounts of organic matter dissolved in water, and high TDS water tastes salty, bitter and doesn’t really quench thirst. The purification system, passing through five stages, and also reverse osmosis, removes water’s salinity and high TDS, and the ATMs dispense purified water.

Each machine costs Rs 20 lakh and has the capacity of 20,000 litres to distribute. It works throughout the day and night. Each card user (one insertion per day) is allowed 20 litres in 24 hours, adds Sekhar. Each ATM, outfitted a CCTV, helps the organisers to help monitor the system. The Water ATMs have been installed in Antervedi, Kesudasupalem, Antervedi Karra, Gollapalem, Biyaputippa, Likithapudi, Bhadava, Nagayalanka, Pallam, Chirra Yanam, Gondi, and Gopavaram. Three are in operation in West Godavari district. Each family, who has Aadhar card, in these villages, is given a smart card, and 3000 cards are distributed for each machine. After the trail run and performance check, Sekhar says, “The facility will be extended to other villages.”

Solar Toilets
As a part of its Swachh Bharat campaign, ONGC Rajahmundry has installed solar-powered toilets, and named them as Swachh Solar Toilet. A first of its kind in Andhra Pradesh, each unit is certified by DRDO (Defense Research and Development Organisation). All the operations - flushing tanks, overhead tank filling and lighting - are automated and powered by solar energy.

Each Swachh Solar toilet has male and female cabins, and also facilities for friendly for the differently-abled. The cabins for women have facilities sanity napkin disposal. The units help conserve water. While a single flush uses 8-10 litres of water in a normal toilet, the auto flush in the Swachh Solar Toilet uses less than fifty percent of water. Plans are afoot to install napkin-vending units within the cabins for women.

“We have already agreed for 13 pre-fab toilets spending Rs 2.55 crore this year. Of them, five have been installed. Remaining will be done on fast track basis,” says Sekhar. Swachh Toilets are operational Narasapur, West Godavari district and in Rajahmundry. “We are going to install toilets in ten railway stations in couple of months by spending Rs 1 crore,” adds Sekhar. While the Water ATMs will be maintained by the village panchayats, with technical maintenance help from ONGC for one year, the solar toilets will be maintained by the local municipality.

As per the government’s norms, ONGC spends 2% of its profits on CSR. Jameel Pasha, Head, Corporate Communications, ONGC, Rajahmundry says the ONGC spent Rs 508 crores under CSR in India. Rajahmundry Asset has spent Rs 35 crore in 2018-19, adds Jameel.

Reflecting the five flag ship programmes of the government, Rajahmundry Asset has also taken up the programmes - Swachh Bharat, Swasth Bharat, Skill India, Digital India, and Make in India. Rajahmundry Asset has rendered medical help to more than one lakh senior citizens in its operational areas. This includes giving medicines free of cost and treating patients at homes, if they are ill. On the skill development front, Rajahmundry Asset supported 500 students to take up training. For 2018-19, the Asset teamed up with four government ITIs – Bhimavaram, Gudivada, Dowleshwaram and KR puram. A batch of 500 students are expected to join the different discipline of the exploration and production industry, and each will be given a stipend of Rs 7500 per month.

- Varma GBSNP