PepsiCo Foundation Celebrates World Water Day With 80th iJal Station Launch In India

In celebration of U.N. World Water Day, PepsiCo and Safe Water Network launched the 80th “iJal” Station today in Vennaram, a village of 4,000 people in the Warangal District. Like most communities in Warangal, local water sources contain dangerous levels of fluoride and microbial contaminants. Death and illness from drinking this water is common. Each iJal Station is designed to purify local ground water and provide convenient, affordable and reliable access to safe water for the entire community. 

Today’s launch is in part a celebration PepsiCo’s recent grant of $1.7 million help Safe Water Network prove that its model can be broadly scaled throughout India. By the end of 2016, this PepsiCo Foundation support will bring safe drinking water to 180,000 additional people. 

Since 2008, the PepsiCo Foundation has awarded over $5 million to Safe Water Network, beginning with an initial $3.5 million grant to build out Safe Water Network’s initial operating footprint in India as well as Ghana. Besides providing direct funding for Stations, PepsiCo Foundation’s support has enabled the refinement and standardization of a comprehensive set of tools, processes, and manuals to build and maintain iJal Stations.