New Delhi, July 5 (IANS) A portable water purifier that can be used by troops on the battlefield to quench their thirst from available surface water has been developed by a defence laboratory in Rajasthan, an officer said Thursday.
The ultra filtration membrane-based Field Water Purifier for military use is a backpack-type unit that can be manually operated by soldiers while moving in the battlefield or on missions, defence ministry official Col S.D. Goswami told IANS over the phone from Jodhpur.
“The water purifier is capable of purifying the surface water available during troops movement on the battlefield and convert it into potable water of World Health Organisation standards,” Goswami said, giving details of the new product from the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) stable.
“This equipment purifies enough water for an army section of eight to 10 soldiers to quench its thirst for a day,” he said.
The system, which weighs just about eight kgs, has been developed keeping in view the harsh field environments, varying field water quality and most important of all, the user-friendliness of the equipment for army personnel use.
The purifier filters water up to 40 litres per hour and can be operated by hand and by foot, apart from having 300-hour anti-fouling mechanism to ensure smooth operation and optimum use.
“Water from rivers, lakes, ponds, and canals can be purified using this equipment and has been designed and developed for hard field conditions and all types of water availability,” the officer said.
The equipment could soon become a part of the Indian Army’s infantry, armoured and engineer section of soldiers on the move during both insurgency operations.
“It is both for war-time and peace-time use,” he said.
The system is specially suited for plains and mountain terrains, where major cause of water contamination is the turbidity due to suspended or dissolved silt, as well as microbial impurities.
The purifier does not need electricity or any chemical for purification of water.
The defence laboratory has fabricated and completed tests on a demo prototype of the water purifier and it is now ready for field evaluations.
