Patna, Dec. 28: F CUBED, an Australian company, which has developed the technology of getting clean drinking water on any scale from any source using solar energy, would launch four pilot projects in Bihar for providing clean drinking water.

The pilot projects would run on a limited scale and each of the projects would cater to the needs of about 50 families. The Australian company would bear the cost of the pilot projects.

Nalanda, Patna, and Kosi regions have been selected for launching of the pilot projects.

While the public health and engineering department has been given the task of identifying the village in Nalanda district, where the pilot project would be launched, in case of Patna rural areas the task has been given to Unicef.

As far as the Kosi region is concerned, the Bihar Kosi Flood Recovery Project director J.R.K. Rao has been requested to identify the community halls, which have been set up for displaced people due to Kosi floods of 2008, in which the said technology would be used.

The fourth pilot project would be run in Patna urban area and the urban development department has been asked to identify the locality where this project would be implemented.

Amit Kumar Das, executive member of Australia-India Business Council, told The Telegraph: “The selection of places has to be finalised before February 15 and a delegation of F CUBED would visit Bihar to work out the details before launching the pilot project.”

Das, who originally belongs to Bihar’s Araria district and is chairman of Isoft software technologies, with its headquarters in Australia, played a major role in convincing the officials of F CUBED to come to Bihar.

“Initially the officials were reluctant to come to Bihar but when I told them about the changed scenario they agreed to come and in June this year they paid a visit to the state and met senior government officials including S. Vijayaraghavan, chief advisor, investments to Bihar chief minister. These meetings changed the perception of the officials about Bihar and things moved forward,” said Das.

He said that based on the experience gained from the pilot projects, details would be worked out with F CUBED about how the technology developed by the firm would be used in Bihar for providing clean drinking water to the people.

Das, a Bihari non-resident Indian has not only roped in the services of an Australian firm for the betterment of the state, but he himself has committed Rs 110 crore investment in his native state.

This investment is coming in the form of an engineering college that is being set up at Forbisganj in Araria district. Bihar Industrial Area Development Authority (Biada) has allotted 14 acres of land for this ambitious project.

“The upcoming engineering college would be one of the best in the country in terms of infrastructure and apart from regular teaching it would also be used for carrying out research work for developing new technologies,” Das said.

He said that Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services (IL&FS) has been entrusted with the task of recruiting faculty members for this college and the salary structure too has been fixed in such a way that the best in the teaching business could be hired.

Das said: “Quality faculty members apart, an agreement has been signed with Technical and Further Education (Tafe), Australia, for conducting virtual classes at the proposed engineering college where faculty from Tafe would teach students back in Forbisganj using the satellite connectivity,” Das added.

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• Australian company F CUBED developed the technology of getting clean drinking water on any scale from any source using solar energy
• The firm would launch four pilot projects in Bihar
• The projects would run on a limited scale
• Each of the projects would cater to the needs of about 50 families
• The Australian company would bear the cost of the pilot projects
• Nalanda, Patna, and Kosi regions have been selected for launching the pilot projects
• Fourth pilot project will run in Patna urban area
• Urban development department has been asked to identify the locality where this project would be implemented