Sri Sathya Sai Drinking Water Supply Project

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Avatars are engaged in selfless service (seva); that is why Avatars happen. Offering service to mankind pleases Avatars. ... I am active and busy twenty-four hours a day. ... I have never craved a minute's rest or sleep or relief. --Sathya Sai Baba, in Sathya Sai Speaks X, Chap. 19, 123; VII, Chap. 59, 350; VI, Chap. 58, 288 (old edition)

This page will discuss Sathya Sai Baba's project, begun in 1994, which brought water to more than 700 villages in the the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh (where Prashanthi Nilayam is located). This project was directed by the Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust and carried out by Larsen & Toubro Limited, with the collaboration of the Government of Andhra Pradesh. The project cost over U.S. $63 million, which was donated to the Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust without any kind of solicitation.

For the moment, here are some statistics on the project.

 

Project highlights

 

 

 

 

 

No. of villages covered

750

 

Population covered

900,000

 

Design population

1,250,000

 

 

Project cost

US$63 million

 

Construction highlights

 

 

 

 

 

Main trunk lines

750 Km

 

Branch lines

1550 Km

 

Overhead service reservoirs(40,000-300,000 liter capacity)

268

 

 

Ground-level service reservoirs(20,000-60,000 liter capacity)

125

 

Ground-level balancing reservoirs(100,000-1,000,000 liter capacity)

21

 

Booster stations

40

 

Summer storage tanks(60 acres)

4

 

Summer storage tanks(32 acres)

3

 

Infiltration wells

13

 

Bore wells

250

 

Details of villages

 

 

 

 

 

Villages covered with borewells as source

274 villages

 

Villages covered by 14 comprehensive protectedwater supply schemes with infiltration wells andfilter points

98 villages

 

Villages (including Anantapur municipality) coveredby 7 summer storage tanks ranging from 30 to 100 acres

98 villages

 

Comprehensive scheme with water treatment plants usingwater from Pennar Ahobilam Balancing reservoir as source

115villages

 

Comprehensive scheme with infiltration well in the bed ofChitravathi Balancing Reservoir at Parnapalli as source

165 villages