NITK Surathkal inaugurates massive rainwater system

CH NEWS, MANGALURU The National Institute of Technology Karnataka (NITK) has implemented the NITKRE project by connecting a 3 crore litre capacity rainwater harvesting reservoir at Surathkal with a 1 MLD (10 lakh litre capacity per day) water purification plant through an 850 metre long pipeline. NITK Governing Council Chairman MM Murugappan, NITK Director Prof B Ravi inaugurated the facility. Air Marshal BU Chengappa, NITK Alumni Association President Niranjan Mahabalappa and others were present. A rainwater harvesting reservoir was constructed in 2025, measuring 110 meters long and 50 meters wide and about 5 meters deep, in a low-lying area in the northeast of the campus. The work was supported by the alumni of 1974, 1983 and 1999 and the alumni association. A water purification plant with a capacity of 10 lakh litres per day was set up and commissioned in February 2026 in collaboration with Petronet MHB Limited. Finnovation Tech Solutions Private Limited has collaborated in the construction of a floating pumping station and an 850-metre underground pipeline from the reservoir to the purification plant. The purified water is stored in sump tanks connected to the campus water supply network. The pumping station is installed on fiber reinforced plastic floating plates, eliminating the need to construct a separate water intake structure at the geomembrane-lined bottom of the reservoir. Two 15 HP open well type submersible pumps with a capacity of pumping 25,200 liters of water per hour are installed. Water shortages occur here every year during the summer season, and in the past, the campus had to be temporarily closed. This year, there have been fears of drought due to less than expected rainfall across the state. This project, which collects rainwater and connects it to the campus water supply network through a purification unit, will help avoid such problems during the summer season, said a SITK release.