The rising mercury has met its match in two Ranchi residents.

Geologists T.N. Mishra and B. Tirkey had worked hard in the monsoon rain to enjoy the summer sunshine without water worries unlike the rest of the capital.

Mishra, a retired director (geology) in state mines department, began harvesting rainwater at his Harmu home two years ago. He collected rainfall in two ways. First, by installing a storage tank on the ground. Second, by constructing a soak pit. This double conservation method can turn around water fortunes for anyone, the geologist says.

According to Mishra, the dimensions of his square storage tank is 5ft by 5ft while it is 4.5ft deep. "A pipe from the rooftop drains into this covered tank. So, every time it rains, I have a tank full of water for later use," the septuagenarian said.

The second method of harvesting rainwater is more scientific, Mishra insisted.

"I have bored a 5ft deep hole into the ground. Above the bore hole, I have constructed a soak pit that is 6ft long, 6ft broad and 10ft deep. The pit depth is divided into layers. The first 5ft from the ground is filled with boulder and bricks, the next 2ft with metal and another 2ft with sand. The final one foot is left empty. This soak pit is connected to the roof with a pipe. Rainwater percolates underground and maintains the water table," he explained.

Mishra has a 1,000-litre overhead tank, which fills up in 30 minutes flat even in peak summer because of how he harvests water round the year.

If Mishra is a promising conservationist, Tirkey - a retired director of Geological Survey of India - is an old hand. He began harvesting water at his Harmu home in early 2000, even before Jharkhand was carved out of Bihar.

Tirkey boasts a single, simple method of collecting rainwater. The 35-feet-deep well in his courtyard is directly replenished by rainwater pouring on the roof.

"It is a crude, but very effective method. Water from my cemented roof drains into the well through a pipe and maintains the water table," Tirkey said, adding that his well still had 6ft water when others in Ranchi were running dry.

Like Mishra, Tirkey's 1,000-litre overhead tank too fills up in a jiffy.

"To minimise wastage, I have installed a water level indicator for the tank. An alarm goes off before water spills and I know just when to switch off the pump," the sexagenarian geologist showed the final way to tide over the present crisis.

Will you install a water recharge pit at your home? Tell ttkhand@abpmail.com