Tata Trusts, a philanthropic organisation, has partnered with Jaldhaara Foundation (JF) to provide innovative solutions to address the growing concerns of water crisis in the city.

The partnership aims to deliver 96.5 crore litres of safe drinking water, dispensed by 65 WaterHealth Centres (WHCs) by 2018 and scale it up to around 698 crore litres by 2033.

Marking ‘World Water Day’ on Tuesday, Tata Trusts, in association with JF, will set up 15 WHCs here and another 50 in North Karnataka to provide safe and assured drinking water to quality-affected areas, Tata Trusts said in a statement.

The WHCs that are being designed and managed by WaterHealth International (WHI), a global leader in decentralised water purification systems, are a key initiative under Tata Water Mission, it said.

This flagship programme of the Trusts aims to explore technology solutions to bring potable water to the marginalised communities and create a healthy future through access to safe, assured and adequate drinking water while also improving sanitation and hygiene, it added.

Crisis in North Karnataka

According to the Department of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj, the drinking water crisis in North Karnataka looms large in over 4,000 villages and 38 towns, which have been contaminated with nitrates and fluoride.

Tata Trusts, through Tata Water Mission and JF will enable the construction of WaterHealth Centers to provide potable water at subsidised rates.

The WaterHealth Centre here is the first initiative of the partnership in Bengaluru, it said.

Arun Pandhi, Programme Director, Tata Trusts said, the Tata Water Mission has been launched to facilitate a more rigorous and focused intervention in mission mode, and make a significant difference in a sustainable manner.

The mission had already reached out to more than 1.5 million people across eight states of Gujarat, Uttarkahand, Nagaland, AP, Telangaha, Jharkhand, Odisha and Karnataka.

Vikas Shah, Chief Operating Officer (COO), WaterHealth International said, WaterHealth International is pursuing the goal of providing clean and safe water access (globally) to 100 million people by 2020 which clearly requires a significant scale-up of the company’s operations and footprint.

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