E-NEWSLETTER
(Vol.I, Issue # 2)
Mail to ewbindia@ewb-india.org
Affiliated to "Engineers Without
Borders-International”
www.ewb-international.org
A primary focus of this
issue of our E-Newsletter is the work EWB-India’s Hyderabad Chapter has just
begun at Rasoolpura – a large slum in the vicinity of Hyderabad Airport. The
slum was identified for us by a group of young, highly motivated volunteers /
members of a newly formed NGO, Bhumi, who have taken up development work at
Rasoolpura to help alleviate a host of endemic problems existing in the area.
The pictures and the article by H. Rouha below tell the story in a nutshell.
Some
EWB-India members, and in particular, a student group of six energetic young
women from the Civil Engineering Department of Muffakham Jah College of
Engineering & Technology (MJCET) and one recent Mechanical Engineering
graduate, are working in collaboration with volunteer-members of Bhumi, to
conduct detailed engineering studies at Rasoolpura involving water quality
tests, study and inspection of the sanitation system, solid waste disposal,
storm water drainage, creating a detailed map of the area with several overlays
of information, such as demographic data, health related data, availability of
water and general infrastructure. We are fortunate to have the expertise of Mr.
Bernhard Chapligin of Applied Geology Department, Karlsruhe University, Germany,
available to us to guide the student group along with Prof. Jafari of Civil
Engineering Department at Muffakham Jah College of Engineering. The results of
these studies will enable EWB-India and Bhumi to devise practical solutions to
some of the most serious problems in Rasoolpura, such as groundwater pollution
and lack of proper sanitation and waste disposal. Bhumi volunteers are also
focusing on many other issues, such as socio-economic problems. We expect EWB-Germany,
Karlsruhe University Chapter to partner with us on this project.
Bernhard Chapligin is part of a team of researchers from Karslruhe University who have initiated the SHAKTI project for megacities funded by the German Ministry for Education and Research. SHAKTI (www.shakti-karlsruhe.de) is an abbreviation for "Sustainable Holistic Approach and Know-How Tailored to India". Currently ongoing is the first phase of the programme 2005-2006 during which the relevant problems in the selected megacities are screened and detailed proposals are elaborated to address future solution strategies. The SHAKTI-project is coordinated by the EIFER Institute for Energy Research. It comprises experts for energy, traffic, social sciences, remote sensing and water. Within the water sector both wastewater and groundwater resources are considered.
I am pleased to report this
new development in our activities since it is a perfect example of how the
EWB movement could become active in India with EWB-India Chapters collaborating
with other community development organizations, and in certain cases,
partnering with foreign organizations and foreign EWB groups. We hope those
interested in participating in this movement will become EWB-India members by
going through the membership process (see www.ewb-india.org
for instructions) and take the initiative to start a professional or student
chapter at their location. (Those located at Hyderabad may join the
Hyderabad chapter after becoming EWB-India members, as per instructions on the
website.) Our nation is in critical need of participation by skilled
professionals and others rural and urban improvement projects, our Rasoolpura
project being an example.
The
Rasoolpura Project (H. Rouha)
Open
Polluted Canal in Rasoolpura Uncovered
Sewage Drains
MJCETStudents Taking GPS Readings
Bernhard
and Volunteers & Workers Doing Water Sampling
According to the UN by the
year 2020, if nothing is done, 1.4 billion people - the equivalent of the
population of China - will be living in slums and shantytowns. Also in poor
countries 40 percent of children living in slums are undernourished, the same
proportion as in the countryside. Infantile mortality rates are comparable and
HIV-AIDS infections and diarrhoea-related illnesses worse in slums.
EWB-India Hyderabad Chapter in partnership with an NGO, Bhumi, has
decided to undertake slum improvement work, starting with a pilot project at
Rasoolpura, a slum identified by Bhumi, situated in the heart of the city.
An open sewage canal passes right across the slum and overspills into the
houses each time there is a heavy downpour. The canal also carries toxic
pollutants from a nearby industrial area. Lack of proper sanitation and hygiene
are additional causes of many diseases prevailing in the area. Due to the high
level of poverty a large percentage of children are engaged in child labour.
Under the able guidance of Mr. Bernhard Chapligin of
Karlsruhe University, Germany, and Prof. Ashfaque Jafari of Muffakham Jah
College of Engineering, a team of engineering students has initiated detailed
engineering and health related studies in order to propose practical solutions.
Bhumi has plans to upgrade the
Zilla Parishad High School located within the slum, with 2000 sq yards of space
around it, into a School–cum-Community Resource Centre to provide better
education and livelihood related training for the general economic development
of the slum.
We are considering a proposal
to hold an international competition for engineering and architecture students
to conceptualize and design the Resource Centre.
EWB-USA
Team’s Visit to Hyderabad and Rasoolpura and their Post-tsunami Recovery
Project
An
EWB-USA San Diego Professional Chapter team visited Hyderabad and Rasoolpura in
July 2006 and spent time interacting with Bhumi volunteers and EWB-India
members. The San Diego team is part of a 6-chapter group of EWB-USA who have
taken up a reconstruction and development project in tsunami affected coastal
villages of Andhra Pradesh click
here to visit the website
www.rinovations.org
www.lramp.org
Rural Technology Innovations – Product & Marketing Support (at IIT-Madras).
www.bhumi.in
A Community Service active group at Hyderabad.
Announcements
1)
An overseas chapter of EWB-India in USA is being formed by
Muralidhar Padala. Anyone interested in joining the chapter may contact Mr.
Muralidhar, P. (muralipadala@yahoo.com).
2) The EWB-USA team working in Prakasam District would
like to welcome the participation of interested professional engineers or
engineering students in or near Ongole in their Prakasam District Integrated
Development Project. Interested persons may contact Mr. Jaime
Garza (garzaj02@yahoo.com)
or Mr. Joseph Jayraj (info@sdrwcindia.org)
The Mondialogo Engineering
Award invites engineering students in developing and developed countries to form
international teams to create project proposals that address the United
Nations Millennium Development Goals – proposals to improve the quality of
life in the developing world, particularly poverty eradication and the promotion
of sustainable development.
Each team should
actively engage in international cooperation and intercultural dialogue over a
six-month period, from December 2006 to May 2007, to propose practical,
high-quality engineering projects for the benefit of local communities in
developing countries.
Ten Mondialogo Engineering Awards of € 20,000 will go to teams with the top
project proposals, with an Honourable Mention and € 5,000 earmarked for twenty
more teams. Click
here to read more
Upcoming
Conferences (India)
13 September 2006 5th
Annual Conference on IT in Power New Delhi, India
05 October 1st
International Indian Geography Congress on Development, Environment and
Geoinformatics
Hyderabad,
India
13 October Bio-Fuels
Vision 2015
Bikaner, India
15 November Issues
related to Urban Planning, Health and Environment in Megacities
Mumbai,
India
16 November ENTECH
India 2006
Mumbai,
India
24 November 2006 Civil
Engineering: Meeting the challenges of tomorrow Ludhiana, India
14 December 2006 Energy,
Environment, and Development: Analysing Opportunities for Reducing Poverty
Bangalore,
India
13 January 2007 New
Delhi Sustainable Development conference New Delhi, India
07 February 2007 3rd
INTERNATIONAL GROUND WATER CONFERENCE Coimbatore, India
14 February 2007 International
Conference on Sustainable Agriculture for Food, Bio-energy and Livelihood
Security
Jabalpur, India