BENGALURU: Ganesh Shanbhag, a software engineer known for implementing rainwater harvesting systems at several apartment complexes in Bengaluru, is now looking to tap the potential of solar power.
“There are around 23,800 apartment complexes in Bengaluru.
While the government has mandated that they make use of rainwater harvesting facilities, only about 5 per cent have done so,” he said. In 2018, he found that his apartment’s borewell had dried up. “That was the problem, and the solution was that every other day it rains in Bengaluru and all that water goes to waste,”
he added.
He found a way to harvest rainwater that was easy and cost-effective. He went so far as to conduct workshops and help other apartments. “We’ve helped around 150 apartments so far, but that’s nowhere near what can be done for Bengaluru,” he said.
His system allows these apartments to rely on the rainwater for around six months, while their borewells recharge. For the next six months, they get water from recharged borewells. Shanbhag says a perennial problem he’s trying to fix is related to solar power. “A report from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy mentioned that we’ll be able to generate around 180 kW-220 kW of power per day. But the problem is channelling it to the power grid,” he said.
“There are various infrastructure-related problems. It’s a major hurdle that needs to be resolved. We’re trying to sort things out,” he said. He is now looking for funding and investors to work on the project
long time.