Sustainable Water Extraction On Campus

The university’s water sourcing strategy emphasizes reducing reliance on freshwater aquifers by substituting potable water with treated wastewater for non-potable applications.

The university maintains a “Zero Liquid Discharge” (ZLD) policy. In 2024, approximately 73% of the total wastewater generated was treated and reused.

Amrita employs an “Integrated Water Management Program” that combines IoT monitoring, biological treatment, and rainwater harvesting

Wastewater Treatment & Reuse (STP)

The university operates decentralized Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) with a combined capacity of 1.4 Million Liters Per Day (MLD).

• Technology: The STPs use a chemical-free biological process involving:
  • Aerobic Activated Sludge: Microbial degradation of organic waste.
  • Ultrafiltration (UF): Advanced filtration powered by solar panels in some units.
  • UV Disinfection: Ensures pathogen-free water for safe reuse.
• Smart Monitoring: The entire process is IoT-enabled, monitoring parameters like pH, BOD, and COD in real-time.

Rainwater Harvesting & Groundwater Recharge

To support the aquifers it extracts from, the university has implemented extensive recharge systems:

• Check Dams & Trenches: These structures slow runoff, allowing water to percolate and recharge the groundwater table.
• Borewell Mapping: Over 400 borewells and 45 open wells have been mapped and monitored to track water levels and quality.

Smart Water Management (IoT)

The “Ecosphere” Water Sustainability Dashboard tracks consumption patterns across sectors:

• • Real-time Tracking: IoT smart meters and sub-meters detect leaks and track usage efficiency.
  • Quality Monitoring: Sensors monitor drinking water parameters (Turbidity, pH, Dissolved Solids) to ensure safety.

Instead of extracting fresh water for all needs, the 162,427 m³ of recycled water was utilized for:

• Irrigation & Landscaping: Supporting the university’s 180,000+ trees and herbal gardens.
• Toilet Flushing & Cooling Towers: High-volume non-potable uses.
• Construction & Cleaning: Reducing the potable water footprint of campus maintenance.
• Nutrient Recovery: Treated sludge rich in Nitrogen and Phosphorus is composted and used as fertilizer, creating a circular resource loop.

• • Community Outreach: Through the Jivamritam and Live-in-Labs® projects, the university deploys biofiltration systems and low-energy wetlands in rural communities.
  • Future Capacity: A new 400 m³/day STP (STP IV) is planned for 2025–26 to accommodate the growing campus population.

Coimbatore Campus

• Utilizes a massive network of check dams and trenches to slow rainwater runoff, allowing it to seep into the ground.
• Achieved high operational efficiency in STPs during the summer of 2024, ensuring green cover maintenance without freshwater extraction.

Amritapuri Campus

• Completed significant infrastructure upgrades in 2024 (Divisions A-1, A-2, and B) to enhance rainwater capture near the Engineering College and Hostels.
• Strategically placed storage tanks behind STP units to mix treated water with rainwater for non-potable use.

Mysore Campus

• Focuses on erosion control alongside extraction. Runoff is managed to prevent soil loss while filling storage pits that support local groundwater levels.

Amrita’s commitment extends beyond campus borders through the Jivamritam project and Live-in-Labs®.

Jivamritam Project

• Objective: To provide clean drinking water to rural communities that rely on contaminated groundwater.
• Technology: The university installs community-owned water filtration systems. These systems use dual-filtration technology (sediment + activated carbon + UV) to purify water from local aquifers/wells without wasting water (unlike typical RO systems which have high rejection rates).
• 2024 Status: Continued operation and maintenance of units in over 5,000 villages, empowering local “Water Committees” to manage their own extraction sustainability.

Village Adoption

• In adopted villages, students and faculty design low-cost water distribution networks that prevent over-extraction from single village wells by distributing load and fixing system leaks.