The Green Team, a conservation group consisting of five members, is working towards restoring the ‘Garuda Pushkarini’, a historic stepwell near Wanaparthy, to its former glory. The team’s objective is to safeguard the well for future generations and revive it.
Members of the team recollect their childhood memories of visiting the well with their grandparents and playing around it, watching fish jumping and turtles swimming in the freshwater well. However, they now find it unfortunate to see the well lifeless, filled with plastic and other pollutants.
Constructed in 1868, the well provides three feet of groundwater and its gates remain functional. It has a capacity to hold 37 lakh liters of water, but only 25 liters can be filled.
The team started by cleaning the surroundings of the well and pumped out water without disturbing aquatic life. Volunteers assisted in cleaning up the surrounding area over four Sundays. Later, skilled labor and a crane were hired to remove trash inside the well, including huge rocks from the shattered wall, mud, and heaps of plastic waste. The team approached the Raja Rameshwar Rao Trust for reconstruction of the dismantled structure. Experienced workers were sent to construct a wall and complete other necessary tasks to prevent further damage.
After rebuilding the wall, natural spring water emerged from the ground well containing approximately 3 lakh liters of fresh water. The well now houses hundreds of fish and turtles swimming inside. The water warrior Kalpana Ramesh, founder of the Rainwater Project, visited Garuda Pushkarini along with her team and architects and provided valuable insights and suggestions for the Green Team.
One of the team members, Divya, appeals to women to stop throwing tonnes of waste in nearby water bodies as part of religious celebrations as it affects aquatic life. Instead, she suggests composting or reusing/recycling waste produced. Another team member, Krishna, urges the public to avoid throwing waste into the well and suggests building a fence around it to prevent further damage. The team is seeking help and support for this endeavor.
