22-year-old Niranjan Karagi from Belgaum, Karnataka, who is pursuing his 3rd year in engineering has developed an affordable water purifier. It is very simple to use. Fill the water into the bottle and insert the purifier. Shake the bottle a bit, and the water is ready for use. Ensure that you close the cap. It’s very handy and can fit into small bottles also.
1.What drove you to make this portable water purifier?
There is a school near my home. I would go there to play with children. Often I would observe that the children would drink unsuitable water from the tank in the school which was filthy from inside. So, I searched for different alternatives on the internet. All the purifiers were expensive. After searching a lot, I decided to design the purifier myself and named it ‘Nirnal’. I even took the sample to Chief Food Divisional Office in Karnataka. They appreciated my efforts, and then I decided that I will take this up on a large scale.
2.Who can use this water purifier ‘Nirnal’? how safe it is for children?
It can be used by anyone above 5-years old. Nirnal is beneficial for school going children, people who love to trek, and in villages where people have access to dirty water. It is very compatible, portable, healthy, reusable and eco-friendly.
3.Where do you intend to take this project?
There are many villages where they have no access to clean water. I want this purifier to reach there. Until and Unless everybody gets safe water to drink, I will not stop. I intend to tie up with Karnataka Government so that it can reach to more people.
4.How was the journey of creating ‘Nirnal’?
It required a lot of effort. I would often participate in projects at school, and that’s how I took this project forward. It uses cotton, activated carbon and mesh in a plastic covering. It fits inside a water bottle easily, and it is handy for travel too. I have employed three women in my village and have taught them the manufacturing process. They take up the orders, and I pay them. The manufacturing process did not incur much.
5. How many people have used this so far?
We started selling it in 2016, and so far we have sold 8000 units. I receive orders from some abroad and other parts of India.
6. What is the result of your ‘Nirnal’ according to you?
People in rural areas often do not have access to clean drinking water. There have been many cases of children from government schools falling ill after drinking water from hand pumps or other contaminated water sources. The levels of contaminants are high enough to cause skin rashes, nausea, dizziness and vomiting. But now, a cost-effective, eco-friendly solution has been developed to make clean drinking water available to everyone.
Niranjan’s Story by The Logical Indian.
