The children of Kollakudi are all smiles now

The tsunami that hit the coast of Tamil Nadu, India in 2004 left 43,000 people homeless, with no source of livelihood or access to water or sanitation facilities. Kollakudi is a village in the region that was not spared from the devastation. After the waters receded and families started picking up the pieces of their lives, they found that the tsunami had created a new problem — ground water salinity levels had skyrocketed such that the water was unsafe to drink. The people of the village were forced to consume water from surface sources, which was often contaminated.

These horrible circumstances led many children in the area to fall ill with water-borne illnesses. Stripped of their health, they no longer could attend school and were prevented from pursuing their dreams through education.

Your donation enabled Ekoventure to install a syphon water filter in the local school in Kollakudi. This water filter removes bacteria and parasites from contaminated water so the children can now drink pure and safe drinking water. School attendance has started to rise because water-borne diseases are held at bay. In the photograph, you can see the smile on the faces of the children in anticipation of getting clean and healthy water.

Thank you for your generosity.