Eye-opener: I realized how bad I am in convincing people about something as logical and straightforward as “water conservation”!
We stay in a small building of ten flats, of which seven are occupied by the owners themselves (including us), and two are rented out. We survive on two water sources – bore well water and Kaveri river-water that is supplied by the corporation. Now, since we are on a relatively low-lying area and have a lake in vicinity, there is not much of a water problem. But in places as near as 2kms from our building, we have heard of bore wells getting dried up, and their dependence on private water tankers. Somehow, these incidents freak me out. I am very particular about not wasting water in my own house. A single drop getting wasted can actually spoil my mood for quite some time. In fact, I have noticed this trait in my entire family (that includes the extended one).
Getting back to the point – The water is drawn up from the sumps below the ground to the two tanks kept on the terrace of the building. Since the tanks are not sufficient to supply water to all nine flats throughout the day, water has to be drawn at least thrice each day with the help of a motor. Now, this is where the problem lies. The tanks don’t have any marker/ mechanism to shutdown the motor automatically. The watchman switches the motor off only when water starts to overflow from the tanks above. And water continues to overflow for atleast 5-10 minutes after the motor has been switched off. I noticed this colossal wastage of water only after I had quit my job and had started spending time at home. So, now we are trying hard to convince people in our building to invest some money in getting the motor startup and shutdown automated. I didn’t know it was such a big task until I spoke to them personally. Seemingly, this task is ranked lowest in their priority to invest the money in. All the pleadings about water being wasted or even the problems we might face in future have been in vain. I guess, I would have to start saving some money in my personal account and get it done myself. Or else, I would remain a frustrated and grumbling woman for a long long time!!
