By Joe Madiath, Vivek Shankam and Deanna Zanetti

November 9, 2016, we left our respective towns (Odisha, India, Austin, Texas and New York City) to travel to the Iringa province in Tanzania.  Three years ago Gram Vikas USA began construction of water and toilet facilities in two villages, Kibena and Lumuli, in the province.

Around 9pm on November 11, 2016, after almost 48 hours of travel, we  reached Ulete Parish, about an hour’s drive from the Irigina bus station. We were welcomed by a group of nuns singing and dancing around our SUV. The Parish is home to around 45 nuns who live, eat, work and pray on this campus. The village of Ulete has a central church that accommodates more than 300 people for Sunday service. Father Augustine is the priest, who heads the church.

 Our first day, we visited Kibena, a village with around 600 families. Families are divided into “hamlets” of 50-150 households. Gram Vikas USA identified a natural water source, which is located 6,260 feet above sea level. According to Joe, it is some of the best water that he has ever drank and he has been identifying water sources for over 40 years. After inspecting the water source we travelled to the reservoir, which is 6,020 feet above sea level. There is a 240 foot difference between the water source and the reservoir. Therefore, due to gravity, the water pressure is more than sufficient. This reservoir, with over a 50,000 gallon capacity, is the largest ever built by Gram Vikas. The distance that the villagers dug for the placement of pipes, between the source and the reservoir, is over 9.3 kilometers.

Our mode of transportation was a rickety old Toyota Land Cruiser. We sometimes did not think it could travel over the terrain but it did not fail us.

 When we inspected the reservoir, it was dry. Water had stopped flowing into the reservoir due to a leak about 2 kilometers away. Our technician, Paulo drove on his dirt bike to grab his wrench to fix it. Around 3pm, water started gushing into the reservoir. Apparently the leak was caused by local government construction. Due to this leak, the nearby hamlet did not receive running water.

On our second day, we visited Lumuli, which is the second village where Gram Vikas began constructing water and sanitation facilities. The village is located at an elevation of 5,660 feet. We started hiking up a hill to view their water source. Since the water is a flowing stream, the water has to be chlorinated before being supplied to the reservoir. The plan included construction of a chlorination tank next to the reservoir. The local people had constructed a small water tank to store water from the source, which then could be used in the construction of the larger reservoir. This little tank was located at an elevation of 5,750 feet, about 90 feet above the village.

After 30 minutes of hiking, we reached the source, which is located at an elevation of 5,900 feet (240 feet above the village). There is continuous water flow sufficient enough to serve the entire village of Lumuli.

In the afternoon, we visited the second hamlet of Kibena village. The second hamlet is located at an elevation of 5,710 feet (310 feet below the reservoir). Since Paulo had fixed the broken pipe, water was up to a third in the tank and this hamlet was receiving plenty of water. We tested the taps in the toilets and the bathing room and there was clear water flowing through them. Sister Jane, one of the nuns who has been helping us, said that water borne diseases, such as diarrhea were cured due to the clean water. She also said that the water they received did not need any further purification.

On our last day, we visited a third hamlet of Kibena village, where construction of toilets had stalled due to unknown reasons. We requested the chief of the village to call a meeting to inquire about the delay. The chief expressed his disappointment with the progress of toilet construction in that hamlet, and agreed to address this issue at a village meeting with all the villagers.

By 4pm, more than 200 villagers had amassed at the village center, where important events are held. The chief thanked the entire Gram Vikas USA team for supporting their village and believing in them. He also expressed disappointment with the construction of toilets in the third hamlet, and promised that the work would be completed within the next few months. He pointed out to the villagers the benefits of having access to clean water, and after hours of deliberation, the villagers all agreed and promised to finish the work as soon as possible.

On our last day, we all headed our respective ways. However, Deanna decided to stay back in Iringa and spend some time with Sister Jane since they had previously met when the project began.  

Two years ago, I traveled to Tanzania to oversee two water and sanitation projects. I stayed at a convent that did not have running water or electricity. Each morning, I would wake up and walk into my bathroom to brush my teeth and to “shower” (the shower consisted of me dumping a pitcher of water over my body). I had this luxury because in my bathroom there were huge buckets filled with water. Thankfully, I did not have to fill up the buckets due to the fact I was a guest and probably would not have been able to lift the filled buckets. At night, if I wanted a hot shower, the nuns would boil water for me to bathe in. To me as an American, this was “roughing it.” To the Tanzanian nuns, this was a daily routine.

The nuns did all the work to make the convent as self-sufficient as possible. They milked cows, raised pigs, tended to chickens and rabbits, farmed, cooked, and cleaned. These are difficult tasks in themselves but with the added complication to collect water these tasks became arduous. When the nuns needed it, they filled large buckets of water from a nearby stream, which they then carried back on their heads (each bucket holds around ten gallons of water.)

It was during my stay at the convent that I became overtly aware of the need to conserve water. My routine did not undergo large changes because the nuns provided water for my basic needs which included washing my face, hands, body, and flushing a toilet. Since they provided the water, I did not want to seem ungrateful by senselessly using all the water in my bathroom. Therefore, I tried to use such little water that the nuns would only have to replenish my supply every four days or so. I found that I could use less water and still carry on with my daily routine. Since I have returned to New York City, I find myself still adhering to water conservation by turning off the faucet when I’m brushing my teeth or washing dishes. Next time you run the faucet without being at the sink or turn on the shower without stepping in, remember that many people consider water to be a luxury and do your part to conserve water.

On one of my days visiting Tanzania, we took a trip to see an all-girls boarding high school that was in-process of being built. I thought an all-girls school was very progressive for the community and I asked Sister Jane, “Why just girls?” She replied, “If you educate females, then the whole family will become educated.” No truer words have been spoken but that is a subject for another blog.

The Sisters are also involved in supporting local community initiatives. They bake hundreds of little bits of fried dough and then sell them at the local high school to raise funds for numerous causes. These “donuts” are quite delicious and normally sell out daily. The Sisters’ mission is to help people and it shows in their daily activities.

On another day trip, we visited a priests retirement home. The grounds had a nicely landscaped yard complete with beautiful flowers and green grass. The area was surrounded by a huge wooden fence akin to a castle wall and a security guard was positioned at the entrance. Inside, the building was layered with Italian marble and contained a beautiful chapel. Huge water tanks located outside the main door provided running water. Unfortunately, we did not get to meet any of the priests that were living there as there were only two full time inhabitants. The rest of the rooms were empty until guests came to visit. Overall, it was an impressive facility and would be considered luxurious to most Americans.

Of course, we were not in America or any other first world country. This opulent compound was located in rural Tanzania where less than a mile away hundreds of people were living without running water and in poor sanitary conditions. In the United States, it’s easy to take running water for granted and it can be difficult for people living in western nations to understand how precious clean water is when it is so readily available. The contrast between the priests’ retirement home and the surrounding dusty, brown earth was stark. I had trouble reconciling the resources consumed by a handful of people when these valuable, life-saving commodities could be used to help so many more rural villagers.

The mission of Gram Vikas USA is to help bring clean water and sanitary conditions to disadvantaged rural communities. We achieve our vision using the MANTRA model and a large component of that model deals with social equality. My experience in Tanzania reaffirms my belief that all people, regardless of class or status, deserve access to clean running water.