Sathya Sai Baba passes away: Natives remember Sathya Sai Baba for philanthropy

RAJAHMUNDRY: The demise of Satya Sai Baba came as a deep shock for the beneficiaries of various social programmes launched by him through Sathya Sai Central Trust in the state.

Prominent among the programmes is Sri Satya Village Integrated Programme (SSVIP) under which drinking water is provided to 212 villages in East Godavari district in a phased manner.

Another programme, the Sri Sathya Sai Drinking Water Project (SSSDWP), launched on January 20, 2008, covers 25 tribal-dominated villages in East and West Godavari districts, an official of the project said today.

"We are not in a position to digest the news of his (Satya Sai Baba) demise. We expected some miracle to happen and he will return and give darshan to his devotees but we received the sad news instead," he added.

Following his deep attachment with this area, the spiritual leader had visited East Godavari for the maximum number of times than any other place, the official said.

Under SSSDWSP, safe drinking water is supplied to about 452 upland and tribal habitations which traditionally are dependent upon drying bore wells and natural streams for water, he said.

As per the Trust, nearly 212 habitations with population of more than 2.20 lakh have benefited from the project in the East Godavari district.

Under the programme, a plant with capacity of 10.5 million litres of water per day (MLD), installed on river Godavari at Purushottapatnam village), pumps out clear water into a ground-level balancing reservoir from where it is supplied to the villages, a release issued by the Trust said.

Another plant on river Pamuleru in Kutravada village, pumps water into a treatment plant of 3.5 MLD capacity.