More than 10,000 people in local communities situated in India have been given access to life-saving clean, drinking water through Halma plc’s Water for Life campaign in partnership with WaterAid.

Halma plc, the global group of life-saving technology companies, teamed up with the international water charity to tackle the global issue of safe drinking water which sees 771 million or one in 10 people around the world not able to access water close to home. Most water sources in India’s infamous ‘Arsenic Belt’ are also heavily contaminated by poisonous levels of arsenic, putting people’s lives at risk.

Through a unique partnership, WaterAid drew upon Halma’s expertise, technology and fundraising to help address one of the world’s long-term challenges: the increasing demands on water, a life-critical resource. The campaign focused on Bhagalpur and Buxar, two districts in northern India, where much of the groundwater is contaminated with arsenic, slowly poisoning the local population.

“Clean running water is a basic human right and yet millions remain unable to access it. It is the difference between life and death for the countless vulnerable communities across the globe. The heavy burden a lack of clean water puts on individuals, families and communities is simply unacceptable. Thanks to the support of Halma over the last two years we’ve been able to extend our reach and educate more local communities in northern India about water-related diseases and what they can do to protect and save precious lives,” said Tim Wainwright, WaterAid’s Chief Executive.

To tackle water accessibility and quality, WaterAid and Halma’s global group of 45 companies, joined forces to raise funds and lend their expertise to provide:

• The supply of over 18,000 water quality tests
• Installation of new water filter systems in 70 schools and healthcare facilities
• Over 7,000 people safe water during floods
• Training of 1,800 local volunteers to become community water testers

Palintest, a Halma company specialising in water quality testing, donated its portable test kits to support the campaign. Its Wagtech Potalab kits enabled nearly 50 drinking water sources to be tested for several dangerous contaminants in Bhagalpur and Buxar districts. Palintest also sent 18,000 individual arsenic tests, ensuring that families in the affected villages and surrounding region can now be kept safe from arsenic contaminated water.

“We see a marked difference on people’s livelihoods now they have clean water. By equipping members of local communities with skills, technology and expertise, they can focus on taking care of their families and making a living,” said Shaurya Sheoran, Product Manager, Palintest. “We’ve witnessed the transformational impact of clean water, especially when we all work together.”

“In the developed world, clean water is something that many take for granted. However, most water sources in India’s ‘Arsenic Belt’ are heavily contaminated by poisonous levels of arsenic which can’t been seen or tasted. When this happens, people’s lives are at stake. They suffer damaging long-term effects ranging from heart disease to cancer,” said Constance Baroudel, Sector Chief Executive for Environmental & Analysis, Halma. “It’s been incredible to see local villagers volunteer to safeguard water quality and embrace water testing so they can make sure their communities are kept safe from harm. By combining expertise, technology, fundraising and training, we’ve been able to change lives for the better.”

Halma is committed to growing a safer, cleaner, healthier future for everyone, every day. Nearly two thirds of its revenue in 2022 contributed to four UN Sustainable Development Goals that are most aligned to its business: health, clean water, infrastructure, sustainable cities. The Halma-WaterAid partnership is aligned to goal 6: clean water and sanitation for all.

Halma’s water companies are focused on making water safer, by enabling 200 million water tests annually, including more than 5 million as part of international relief and development efforts.

For more on how Halma and WaterAid are transforming thousands of lives with safe drinking water, please watch the video below.

https://youtu.be/YKwlDghTtbA

For further information, please contact:

Halma plc

Andrew Williams, Group Chief Executive
Clayton Hirst, Director of Corporate Affairs                     +44 (0) 7384 796 013
Jocelyn Saunders, Head of External Communications +44 (0) 7769 371 332

About Halma

Halma is a global group of life-saving technology companies, focused on growing a safer, cleaner, healthier future for everyone, every day. Its purpose defines the three broad markets it operates in:

• Safety – Protecting people’s safety and the environment as populations grow, and enhancing worker safety.
• Environment – Addressing the impacts of climate change, pollution and waste, protecting life-critical resources and supporting scientific research.
• Health – Meeting the increasing demand for better healthcare as chronic illness rises, driven by growing and ageing populations and lifestyle changes.

It employs over 7,000 people in more than 20 countries, with major operations in the UK, Mainland Europe, the USA and Asia Pacific. Halma is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LON: HLMA) and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 index.

About WaterAid 

WaterAid is working to make clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene normal for everyone, everywhere within a generation. The international not-for-profit organisation works in 28 countries to change the lives of the poorest and most marginalised people. Since 1981, WaterAid has reached 28 million people with clean water and nearly 29 million people with decent toilets.

For more information, visit our website wateraid.org/uk, follow us on Twitter @WaterAidPress, @WaterAidUK, @WaterAid, or find us on Facebook, LinkedIn or Instagram.

• 771 million people in the world – one in ten – do not have clean water close to home.
• Almost 1.7 billion people in the world – more than one in five – do not have a decent toilet of their own.
• Over 300,000 children under five die every year from diarrhoeal diseases caused by poor water and sanitation. That’s more than 800 children a day, or one child every two minutes.
• Investing in safely managed water, sanitation and hygiene services provides up to 21 times more value than it costs.
• WHO/UNICEF (2021) Progress on household drinking water, sanitation and hygiene 2000-2020. Joint Monitoring Programme. Geneva: World Health Organisation.
• WHO/UNICEF (2021) Progress on household drinking water, sanitation and hygiene 2000-2020. Joint Monitoring Programme. Geneva: World Health Organisation.
• WaterAid calculations based on: Prüss-Ustün A, et al. (2019). Burden of Disease from Inadequate Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Selected Adverse Health Outcomes: An Updated Analysis with a Focus on Low- and Middle-Income Countries. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health. vol 222, no 5, pp 765-777. AND The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (2020) Global Burden of Disease Study 2019. Seattle, WA: University of Washington.
• WaterAid. (2021) Mission-critical: Invest in water, sanitation and hygiene for a healthy and green economic recovery.