Visit to SLV Lakeview Apartment

SLV Lakeview is an apartment complex in Baba nagar, Bangalore cross of Bengaluru North. The apartment was constructed during 2014. It has 96 flats and around 400 residents. The apartment is located very close to Palanahalli lake which is receiving untreated wastewater from Baba nagar which does not have swer lines. SLV Lakeview has adopted rainwater harvesting to have sustainable water management. 

Water demand and supply: The apartment does not have Cauvery connection. The apartment is dependent on borewell water and tanker water. 

There are 2 borewells in the apartment out of which one is not yielding. BBMP has provided a borewell exclusively for the apartment. Borewell no.1 had stopped yielding a few years ago. There was an attempt made to check if the borewell is yielding and it was found that the borewell was yielding mudding water. 

The apartment buys 4 loads of water tankers of 7000 litres capacity a day. The apartment spends around 10-14 lakhs annually on water tankers.

BBMP borewell

Water storing sumps: Water from the functional borewells is stored in the sump tank. There is only one water storing sump of 75,000 litres capacity. There is a new sump constructed by well digger Ramesh using concrete rings. It is 10ft deep and 5ft in diameter. The sump is receiving rainwater.

Water storing sump tank 

Note: There is no water treatment plant and the sewage treatment plant in the apartment. Wastewater is collected in a septic tank which is cleaned once in every 6 months. 

Rainwater harvesting: 

The apartment has dug three recharge wells of 12ft deep and 3ft diameter which receives rooftop rainwater from part of the terrace. One of the recharge well is located next to the borewell no.2. Well digger Ramesh has suggested implementing direct borewell recharge, but the association consulted a civil engineer who suggested indirect borewell recharge. The civil engineer said direct borewell recharge will cause silt accumulation and block the borewell’s water sources’.

The other recharge well is located closer to Borewell No.1 which is not put into use. The other recharge well is dug next to the rainwater sump tank, the overflow from the sump tank enters the recharge well. 

Rainwater sump tank where excess water overflows into recharge well

Recharge well next to BW No 2(left)

Recharge well next to BW No 1(right)

Down take pipes from a part of terrace(left) and rainwater filter(right)

The rainwater sump tank is full of water and it is not put into use. The terrace is used by residents to take their pets, combing, drying cloths etc and which keeps the terrace unclean. Thus the residents argue the water from the rainwater sump should not be used for gardening.

Role of Miss.Sheela and her team: The president of the association Miss.Sheela and her team diligently implemented rainwater harvesting in the apartment. The association was socially aware and had faced much difficulty in convincing the residents to implement RWH. In the words of Sheela, “our borewells yield is reducing and we are not sure when we will be receiving Cauvery water. We are threatened about our borewells running out of water. I find rainwater harvesting is very useful. I had to struggle so much to convince the residents on the cost aspects and assured them that recharge wells would definitely contribute to the yield of the borewells”.

– Rakshitha M L