Water tank and taps at Kailali Secondary School

 

Kailali Secondary School is located on the outskirts of Jhalari Pipladi Municipality in Kanchanpur District. It has 533 students and 19 teachers. The students relied on hand pumps for drinking water at the school, but unfortunately, the water was contaminated with arsenic. “The only alternative that children had for drinking water was to bring water in bottles from home. During the summer, they would run out; and the shortage of drinking water caused frequent dizziness among the students. Some of them fainted,” recalls Madhu Bohara, the principal. USAID’s Safe WASH II Activity met with the school water management committee in February 2017. They addressed the school’s problem by supporting the construction of a new drinking water supply scheme from the Safe Jhalari Drinking Water Scheme. Safe WASH II constructed a big water tank and installed several taps inside the school premises, and the school supported the scheme with construction materials and unskilled labor. This investment has paid off well. Students no longer have to drink harmful water, nor do they have to carry drinking water from home. The students and teachers can drink arsenic-free water at school every day.