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Building on the joint vision of Coca-Cola and UN HABITAT to work towards the sustainability of communities, the two partners joined hands with the Communication and Capacity Development Unit under the Public Health Engineering Department (CCDU-PHED), Govt of West Bengal to announce the completion of clean drinking water projects in 12 schools in 5 districts of West Bengal. This project is a part of the partnership agreement between UN Habitat and Coca-Cola India to improve access to water and sanitation in more than 50 schools.
The dedication function was organized at Bamanagar Subala F.P.School, Kakdwip, South 24 Parganas where the Chief Guest, Mr. Somesh Kr. Bhattacharya, Joint Secretary, PHED, Govt. of West Bengal reviewed and discussed the implementation of projects in the area. Also, present at the occasion were Mr. Subha Datta Roy, Executive Director, CCDU-PHED, Government of West Bengal, Prof (Dr.) Indira Chakraborty, Chief Advisor, CCDU-PHED, Govt of West Bengal, Mr. Andre Dzikus, Chief-Water, Sanitation and Infrastructure Branch, United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT) Dr. Kulwant Singh, Advisor, Water, Sanitation and Infrastructure Branch, UN Habitat, Mr. N. R. Goenka, Chairman & Managing Director, Diamond Beverages Pvt Ltd, senior officials from Coca-Cola India, teachers and students.
Speaking on the occasion, Somesh Bhattacharya, Joint Secretary, PHED, Govt. of West Bengal, said, "There is no denying that the water quality in these five districts of West Bengal has a history of arsenic and fluoride contamination thereby rendering it unsuitable for consumption. This affects both the health and education of school children as they are frequently taken ill and hence end up missing classes. We have therefore installed two borewells and a handpump in a majority of the schools since it brings about redundancy and also complements the need for sanitation and midday meals. I complement all the partners for taking forward this project on clean drinking water supply."
The implementation of these 12 projects takes forward the partnership between Coca-Cola India and UN Habitat to improve community access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation in West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, India and Nepal. Similar projects are to be taken up in more than 50 schools in West Bengal with an investment of USD 200,000 (more than Rs. 91 lakh). While UN Habitat will provide USD 100,000 for the project, Coca-Cola India and CCDU-PHED will be contributing USD 50,000 each.
Andre Dzikus, Chief- Water, Sanitation and Infrastructure Branch, United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT) and N. R. Goenka, CMD, Diamond Beverages (authorized bottlers of The Coca-Cola Company in India) with the students at the announcement of the the completion of clean drinking water projects in 12 schools in 5 districts of West Bengal
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Andre Dzikus, Chief- Water, Sanitation and Infrastructure Branch, United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT) and N. R. Goenka, CMD, Diamond Beverages (authorized bottlers of The Coca-Cola Company in India) at the announcement of the the completion of clean drinking water projects in 12 schools in 5 districts of West Bengal.This project was a part of the partnership agreement between UN Habitat and Coca-Cola India to improve access to water and sanitation in more than 50 schools
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Adding further,Andre Dzikus, Chief-Water, Sanitation and Infrastructure Branch, United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT) said, "Access to clean water and sanitation can adversely affect human development. These basic needs are fundamental to improving the living conditions of the urban poor. Our partnership with Coca-Cola India and CCDU-PHED is an example of how Public-Private-Community partnerships can help meet the Millennium Development Goals, especially the target of halving the number of people not having access to clean water and adequate sanitation by the year 2015."
Also present at the occasion, N. R. Goenka, CMD, Diamond Beverages said, "Access to safe drinking water is fundamental to all communities and we understand that businesses thrive only amidst vibrant and sustainable societies. It also includes spreading awareness among the communities on the ways to conserve and preserve water. We are pleased to partner with UN Habitat and CCDU-PHED in this project to improve the overall standard of living in West Bengal."
Having being completed under a unique multilateral partnership, this project demonstrated the positive effect of coming together of education institutions, government agencies, corporate and UN agency to collectively create mass awareness on using water judiciously and promote Human Values-based Water Sanitation and Hygiene Education (HVWSHE) in schools.
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