Project Report – Borewell Recharge

Action-Programme Name- Visiting the borewell recharge site in Jodhpur and holding discussions with the concerned beneficiaries.

To know more about this SIF Project, follow the link – Project Jal

Name of Co-project Organization- Sankalpa Rural Development Society (SRDS)

Geography of Pokhran and background of its farmers

Representative of Save Indian Farmers Foundation Mr.Prafulla Sutar visiting the site where borewells have been recharged at Pokhran

Pokhran is a village and municipality located 112 km east of the city of Jaisalmer in Jaisalmer district in the Indian state of Rajasthan. Surrounded by rocks, sand and five salts, the word “Pokhran” (Pokhran) means “five salt-grade” in Rajasthani language. The site of India’s first underground nuclear test is near Pokhran.

Being located in the desert of Thar, it has a dry climate and receives some rainfall in the rainy season from July to September. Pokhran has a very hot and dry summer during the months of April to June. The temperature in summer can reach 46 °C during the day while, the night temperature is more than 30 degrees Celsius. In Pokhran, the winter is very cold and the temperature drops to 1 °C. According to the 2011 Census of India, Pokhran had a population of 28,457. Males constitute 55% of the population and females 45%. Pokhran has an average literacy rate of 56%, lower than the national average of 74.0%: male literacy is 68%, and female literacy is 41%. In Pokhran, 19% of the population is under 6 years of age.

The villages around Pokhran are sparse. The farmers here are completely dependent on monsoon farming. People go to work in silica mines. Animal husbandry is the main occupation. They earn their livelihood from milk and wool from sheep.

Report Observations

A lake — approximately 20 feet x 15 feet and 8 feet deep — is built near the borewell site — that carries rainwater into it.
In fact, a pit is dug around the mantle of the borewell – 6 feet x 4 feet in size and 8 feet deep. This work is done by JCB.
At the bottom of the crater, three types of rock-sized layers (40 mm, 20 mm, and 6 mm) have been formed to a depth of 2 feet, with the purpose of which is to filter rainwater and go in.
The next slits are cut into the casing of the borewell using a cutting machine and the casing is then wrapped with nylon mesh so that solid/heavy materials cannot enter the casing pipe.
At this stage, cement sticks of 6 x 3 feet diameter are installed around the lining of the borewell and to seal them, the open spaces are filled with cement. Then the cement ring is filled with 20 mm stones from inside.
The second cement ring, built 6 x 3 feet in diameter, is placed next to the first cement ring and the gap is filled with cement. This cement ring is left empty and a cement cover is put on it to prevent waste.
The first cement ring of this empty cement ring has a 3-inch feeder pipe installed from the lake to a hole. Therefore, water is brought from the lake.

During the rainy season, the water in the lake first goes empty where it drips down through the filtration material and then goes into the second cement ring around the borewell cover. It then enters through the slits and the water is filtered where there is storage in the ground. Similarly, the borewell recharge seen in Pokhran and Jodhpur has been constructed in some places its work is in progress.

Borewell Recharge site 1

This borewell has been recharged in the area of Raja Shri Nagendra Singh of Pokhran Fort. But around that, I saw such a complete thorny shrub-filled land, so I did not see that there was agricultural land on the side.

Borewell Recharge site 2

Vishnuji’s borewell recharge site in Pokhran is currently underway. Work was started 20 days in advance on the day of the visit. This farmer’s farm is about 40 acres.

Borewell Recharge site 3

This is the borewell recharge site in Sadar Krishi Vigyan Kendra. The site of this borewell recharge will be used for the experiment of different crops of agriculture.

: Borewell Recharge site at Krishi Vigyan Kendra

: Prof. R.R. Meghwal, Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Kajri

List of farmers who have recharged borewells:-

Sr.no	Farmer’s name	address	Agricultural area(acre)
1	Nagendra Singh (King of Pokhran Fort)	Pokhran	–
2	Vishnu Marwar	Pokhran	40
3	Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Jodhpur	Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Jodhpur	10