Type of Change: New/further knowledge gained
Boundary Level: Community
Summary/Theme: Arsenic water contamination information and mitigation practices shared with teachers and students in India
India faces a severe drinking water crisis with more than 50 million people exposed to arsenic contaminated groundwater. There are several regions in the country affected with arsenic contamination and with no access or very limited access to safe drinking water. Prolonged consumption of arsenic contaminated water can lead to severe physical and mental health issues with social stigma among the affected communities. Lack of awareness is one of the major challenges in tackling arsenic contamination. Through capacity building programs, SCaN has shared knowledge among key individuals who can take arsenic awareness further. Mr. Pranjit Borkakoti is the Cluster Resource Centre Coordinator of Madhapur Block in Titabar town, Jorhat district, India. He provides training to government officials and schoolteachers to develop their capacity and enhance their teaching skills. He was invited to the capacity development programs organized by SCaN as he showed interest in dealing with arsenic pollution in his area.
Afterwards, Pranjit felt more confident with the new insights he had gained and organized a training program for teachers under his cluster to spread general knowledge about arsenic and its negative impacts on health and well-being. He also delivered a speech at the senior high school to explain to how arsenic water negatively impacts their health and well-being.
Pranjit stressed that he has received positive responses after the training, and he considered that children and their families were more aware about how to deal with arsenic contamination in the area.
