The Dutch Well and Konkini Well in Chellanam

A Dutch Well and a Konkini Well in Chellanam ( a 40 min drive from Ernakulam) have been cleaned up and rejuvenated  with help from the Rotary. The wells are alongside the main road, fairly non descript unless someone pointed it out to you  and barely about 100m from the Arabian Sea. Both these wells used to be sources of clean drinking water for each of the communities. They are quite unremarkable in how they look but the age of the wells sure makes one want to look at them again. Water is available at just about 5-6ft below ground level

The Konkini well is said to be 500 years old. The well has a square cross section. The inner walls are lined with laterite.  The stones are as old too. Only the Gaud Saraswat Brahmins used to drink from this well

The Dutch well is slightly modern in comparison, only 350 years old. Circular in Cross section. This was for the Dutch

Due to the proximity to the sea, the water in both wells is fairly saline. TDS 1400 ppm. Hence rainwater harvesting has also been undertaken to redirect water from the rooftops of nearby homes into this well. Due to the availability of municipal supply not many people look to these wells as a source of water and perhaps hence the indifference. However when water is in short supply in the village, the community does look to these wells for water. Both wells do not dry up all through the year.

Both these wells are not far from each other and it makes for a good vision to imagine the dutch and the GSBs drawing water from adjacent wells !!

Laterite wall for the Konkini well

The Konkini well

Dutch Well

Now lined with  cement