Bala Vikasa and Verizon India join hands for a greener footprint
- Desiltation project in 6 villages near Warangal in Telangana to benefit more than 1000 farmers
Chennai, 31stJuly 2019: Bala Vikasa, a non-profit devoted to sustainable
development in India, recently completed an extensive de-siltation project in
the villages of Thimmakkapalli, Samudrala, Garnepalli, Konkapaka, Upparapalli,
and Ranganayakagudem near Warangal, Telangana. With financial support from
Verizon India, this community driven initiative is aimed at promoting
sustainable farming practices and ensuring ecological balance in these regions.
As per the irrigation
department records of Telangana government, there are over 45,000 small and
medium tanks irrigating over 22 lakh acres in the state. Majority of these
tanks start underperforming over a period of time due to silt deposits and low
maintenance. This not only impacts water storage for farmers but also leads to
an ecological imbalance with the erosion of top layer arable soil, making
farmers depend on chemical fertilizers for better yield.
With the funds from
Verizon India, Bala Vikasa has chosen these 6 villages for the desiltation
project which entails:
- procuring excavating machines and placing them in the tanks to excavate silt
- training and guiding a community elected committee to oversee the excavation efforts
- strengthening the perimeter of the tanks to prevent water from overflowing into the villages
- tree plantation drives to foster better community relations
- supplying the excavated silt to the farmlands
Commenting on this
unique initiative, Kalyani Sekar, Vice
President, Verizon India, said, and “Caring
for the environment is one of the priorities of Verizon’s Corporate Social Responsibility
programs in India. The Bala Vikasa project is expected to help farmers and the
cause of environment in equal measures.”
Shoury Reddy Singareddy , Executive Director, Bala Vikasa, said, “The
tank desiltation program brings instant, assured and multiple benefits not just
to the farmers who participated in tank desiltation but also to the entire
community. The farming community in
these regions is highly invested in this project as is evident by their
willingness to share part of the costs incurred towards tractor rentals. We
thank Verizon for supporting Bala Vikasa to extend the benefits to these 6
villages in Telangana.
Once completed, 1500 acres of farmlands will receive silt, water
percolation rate will improve significantly, thereby increasing water table
levels in and around the village.
About Bala Vikasa:
Bala Vikasa is a community development organization founded by Mrs. Bala
Singareddy and her husband Mr. Andre Gingras in India, in the year 1991. It is
a registered non-profit and secular community development organization. Since
its inception, Bala Vikasa has impacted the lives of 5 million rural poor in
India over the past 42 years through variety of community driven development
projects such as tank de-siltation, water purification, sujal ATW, model
villages etc.
About Verizon India
Verizon India, an IT & Technology GIC (Global
In-house Center) that operates out of Chennai, Hyderabad and Bengaluru, is a
wholly owned subsidiary of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ).
Established in the year 2001, Verizon India supports Verizon’s domestic
wireless and wireline businesses in the US as well as its global Enterprise
Solutions business (VES).
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