The water from the stone spouts in Alkohiti, Patan, does not go to waste. On the initiation of local Sushil Shrestha, residents have begun collecting water and distributing it to all the houses in the area. "We no longer have severe shortage of water," says Naresh Shakya of Alkohiti Conservation and Drinking Water Distribution Consumer Committee. "We don't have to wait for water from the state supply lines now that we save the water from the spouts."

Water from the spouts is first collected in a tank, then pumped into an overhead tank. It is then distributed to 215 families in Alkohiti, Ekade and Nalkhutol. It cost Rs 2.5 million to build the water collection and distribution infrastructure, and each house contributed Rs 4,000. A 22,000-litre tank has been installed as up to 20,000 litres of water are collected during the monsoon, and 3,000 in the winter. In exchange for the services, the locals pay Rs 200 to the committee every month.

Their success story has inspired the locals of Emukhel, Amrithiti and Bashiti to replicate the system.

There are 389 stone spouts in the Kathmandu Valley, and the natural sources of 225 spouts have dried up. It is estimated that these spouts provide a total of about 2.9 million litres of water every day.

READ ALSO:
Medical marijuana
Back to paint
Genes lost to darkness