Mumbai, Apr 12 () Global liquid and powder coatings supplier Axalta has formed a three-year partnership with Gurugram-based charitable trust Sehgal Foundation for a proposed soil and water conservation project in the the Alwar district of Rajasthan.
Under the partnership, the US coatings major will develop three water ponds, each having a capacity of 10,000 kilo litre in the region for the storage of rainwater to support local farming, animal husbandry and eco-services, the company said in a release.
The proposed pond development will engage the local community on water and soil conservation. Besides, the project will also provide water management training to ensure that the catchment area can sustain the local community with water available all year round.
The first such pond will come up in a catchment area over of 0.6 sq km in the Bhuriyabas village in the Thanagazi block of the drought-prone district bordering Haryana, it said.
In addition, the project will also carry out tree planting to prevent soil erosion, provide shade and fodder to animals, and revive the area which has a biodiversity of about 12,000 wild species of flora and home to wild animals, the release said.
“We are proud to partner with Sehgal Foundation in this initiative of water and soil conservation in one of the remotest and worst affected areas of India,” Axalta Coating Systems’ chairman and chief executive Charles Shaver said.
“The project to increase surface water availability in the region will bring a change for the better to the lives of local community,” Ajay Pandey, CEO, Sehgal Foundation said.
The construction of one pond is expected to take about six months, after which the Sehgal Foundation will carry out monitoring and evaluation, as per the company.
The New York Stock Exchange-listed Axalta, which began its India operations in 1996, currently has offices and regional training centres in Gurugram, Mumbai, Kolkata and Bengaluru.
Besides, it has two manufacturing facilities in Savli near Baroda in Gujarat, including the recently inaugurated one, which produces coatings for refinish, automotive parts, and commercial vehicles.
The combined capacity of the two facilities is 21 million litres per annum, with old unit having a capacity of 10 million litre. IAS DSK DSK
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