Small Mandir for protection of the Well

A Small Mandir for the Protection of the Well

For the protection of the boreholes drilled by the author's program and equipped with bucket pump, a small mandir was constructed near the platform. During the 1996 pump installation program, the villagers generally supplied the image or a statuette of a divinity that was fixed inside the little mandir. The strong interest and appreciation shown by the people at the completion of the construction of each mandir, encouraged the author to adopt in the 1997 program, as part of
the pump installation operation, the construction of a small mandir in each well site equipped either by Mark II hand-pump or by bucket pump.

A statuette of Lord Ganesh was inserted inside each little
temple. Adivasis show much respect and devotion for Lord Ganesh
as they believe that he will help them to overtake their daily
problems, including possible borehole site land ownership
problems.

The construction of the small mandir has a multiple scope. The
main one is to thank God for the grace to have found crystal
clear water which will improve the health of the people. Another
main reason is that the well site becomes a sacred place and as
such it prevents that clothes are washed on the platform and
animals are watered at the well site, thus preventing water
contamination problems. Furthermore, it helps to avoid possible
disputes about land ownership of the well site (many Adivasi
villages are located on hilltops, where drilling is not
recommended, in many cases they are land-less).