Wells on Wheels Launches Its Water Wheel to Raise Attendance of Young Girls in Schools in India

London, United Kingdom--(Newsfile Corp. - June 8, 2022) - Wells on Wheels has launched a new campaign that is distributing Water Wheels to transport water in India. The sight of long lines of young girls making their way to the closest well and returning with many pots balanced on their heads is common in Indian villages. Many young girls are kept from school to fetch potable water to meet the needs of their household, as the men and boys in the family would be busy tending to the fields to make money. The weight of carrying heavy water on their heads at such a young age has a severely detrimental impact later in life. Carrying such pots on a daily basis affects the physical development of these children and can cause musculoskeletal issues and injuries.

Due to the inefficient use of groundwater for cultivation and a population that is the second highest in the world, it is projected that India will have only half the water it needs by 2030. Metropolitan cities like New Delhi and Chennai have already experienced water shortages this year. The scenario is just as bad in the villages. Less than 50% of the population in India has access to safe drinking water. The impact that this scarcity of water has on the education of poor girls in villages has prompted Shaz Memon, founder of Digimax Dental, a dental marketing agency to set up Water Wheels.

Commenting on the initiative, Shaz Memon, the founder of Wells on Wheels said, "It was the birth of my daughter five years ago that inspired me to ask a relative back in India to provide local families with essentials for their babies. While discussing this with him on a video call, I saw long lines of young girls going to fetch water in the background. For him, it was a sight that was commonplace. For me, it was a heartbreaking one. I could not imagine the plight of a young girl having to miss out on school just because she had to spend hours in the blazing heat making several trips to fetch water from the nearest source of potable water."

A Water Wheel is a wheel-shaped round water drum that is fitted with a handle, and can be easily rolled on the ground instead of being carried on the head. It can carry 45 litres of water, five times as much water as a single bucket, thus reducing the number of trips needed to fetch water. The physical strain linked to carrying water and risk of injury is far less. With less time and effort needed to fetch water needed to meet the requirements of their household, young girls are now attending school and helping to break the cycle of poverty. Young girls' aspirations to leave their villages and achieve their dreams is significantly more likely when they attain an education.

Initially set up as a crowdfunding initiative in June 2019, Wells on Wheels is a non profit organisation that identifies poor families in villages across India and supplies them with free "Water Wheels". Wells on Wheels is a registered charity that has so far transformed the lives of many girls in villages across India.

Memon's goal is to change the lives of one million women and girls by 2025. It is estimated that at least 2000 girls are now attending school regularly as an outcome of his efforts. 

Media Contact:
Name: Shaz Memon
Email: shaz@digimax.co.uk

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/126933