SIF (Save Indian Farmers) is an NGO that IDS is supporting for the first time in 2017. The $6,000 IDS grant to SIF is earmarked for borewell recharge work in Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh. The project is called Project Jal.

The goal of Project Jal is to offer poor, drought-affected farmers in this region a sustainable source for irrigation water.

The problem

According to the website of the Sankalpa Rural Development Society (SRDS), the implementation partner on this project, “excessive digging of new borewells and incessant use of existing ones has resulted in severe depletion of groundwater levels, rendering many borewells dry.”

The solution

The SRDS method of borewell recharge combines rainwater harvesting practices with innovative techniques to replenish aquifers with naturally filtered rainwater. This video from the SRDS website explains how the recharging process works:

Progress so far

In 2017, Project Jal is to recharge borewells for 20 farmers; so far, recharge work on 10 borewells has already been completed.