By restoring traditional water bodies, improving groundwater recharge, supporting farmers, involving local communities and using scientific tools, TVS Srinivasan Services Trust has created a model that can inspire similar initiatives across India.
RAIPUR (India CSR): TVS Srinivasan Services Trust has been honoured with the Water Positivity Award 2026 at the India Sustainability Awards 2026 for its outstanding contribution to community-driven water conservation and sustainable rural development.
The award recognises the Trust’s community-led water conservation work across 2,500 villages and its impact on farmers, groundwater recharge and rural sustainability.
The award was presented during the 18th India CSR® Leadership Summit 2026, held at Rungta College Campus, Bhilai, on the theme “CSR, Sustainability and ESG for Viksit Bharat 2047.”
The award was received by Swaran Singh, IAS (Retd.), Chairman and CEO, TVS Srinivasan Services Trust; D. Panneerselvam, Head – Water Conservation & Infrastructure, TVS Srinivasan Services Trust; and M. Ganesh Kumar, Field Director – Padaiveedu, TVS Srinivasan Services Trust.
The award was presented by Dr. Bhaskar Chatterjee, widely regarded as the Father of Indian CSR and Sustainability and Chairman, National Sustainability Reporting and Disclosure Standards Committee, Bureau of Indian Standards. The ceremony was held in the presence of Dr. Jawahar Surisetti, Vice Chancellor, Rungta International Skills University; Santosh Rungta, Chancellor, Rungta International Skills University; and Rusen Kumar, Founder and Editor, India CSR.
Recognition for Community-Led Water Conservation
The recognition highlights the Trust’s sustained work in water conservation through community participation. According to the award nomination document submitted for the India Sustainability Awards 2026, TVS Srinivasan Services Trust’s project is titled “Water Conservation efforts with community participation.” The project period covers FY 2023–24 to FY 2024–25, with a total investment of Rs. 16 crore.
TVS Srinivasan Services Trust, the social arm of TVS Motor Company and TVS Holdings Ltd., works across 2,500 villages. Its development model is based on an integrated, holistic and participatory approach. The Trust works closely with communities and government systems to promote sustainable village development through the principle of Total Community Involvement (TCI).
Work Across Multiple States
The Trust’s work covers villages across several states. The nomination document notes that TVS SST works in 11 districts of Tamil Nadu, including Hosur, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, Dharmapuri, Tiruvannamalai, The Nilgiris, Dindigul, Tiruchirappalli, Mayiladuthurai, Tirupathur and Vellore.
The initiative also reaches Mysore and Nagarhole in Karnataka, Tirupati and Nandyal in Andhra Pradesh, Pune in Maharashtra, and Solan in Himachal Pradesh, covering 2,500 villages in total.
Reviving Traditional Water Bodies
The award recognises the Trust’s work in restoring traditional water structures that had lost storage capacity due to years of silt accumulation. Many rural tanks and water bodies had become less effective, forcing farmers to depend heavily on depleting groundwater.
TVS SST’s approach focuses on identifying such tanks with community support, mobilising local participation, and carrying out desilting and structural repair scientifically. The Trust involves farmers, Self-Help Groups, Panchayat leaders and local communities at every stage of the process. This ensures ownership, long-term maintenance and sustainability.
The initiative has so far impacted 25,000 farmers through community-driven water conservation efforts.
Total Community Involvement as the Core Model
A key reason for the recognition is the Trust’s Total Community Involvement model. Under this approach, communities are involved from planning to implementation and maintenance.
The Trust also promotes community contribution through the 3M model — Man, Money or Material. This means local people contribute through labour, financial support or materials, depending on their capacity. This model strengthens accountability and ownership.
Water Management Committees are formed for post-conservation maintenance. These committees help ensure that restored water structures continue to serve communities over the long term.
Over 500 Structures Restored
The Trust has restored more than 500 water structures. These include tanks, channels, percolation ponds and other traditional water bodies.
According to the nomination document, the work has created 164 crore litres of additional water storage capacity. This has contributed to groundwater recharge, improved water availability, reduced pumping hours and better agricultural resilience.
The impact assessment mentioned in the nomination document records significant outcomes. TVS SST collaborated with Anna University in 2023 to assess the impact of desilting and rejuvenation work in three water bodies. These were used as prototypes to understand the wider outcomes of more than 300 water conservation structures supported by the Trust at that time.
The assessed tanks included Sadhuperipalayam, Vettaikarankulam and Beerjepalli. The assessment showed an increase in storage capacity across these water bodies.
Groundwater levels improved significantly. Borewell water levels in Krishnagiri improved by 96%, from 586.5 feet to 21.73 feet. Open wells in Tiruvannamalai improved by 65%, from 33.33 feet to 11.8 feet.
The intervention also reduced pumping hours. Borewells recorded a 44% decrease in pumping hours, while open wells recorded a 22% decrease. This has direct benefits for farmers by reducing energy use and irrigation stress.
Farmers Report Higher Income
The water conservation work has also contributed to changes in cropping patterns and farm income. The nomination document notes that paddy cultivation increased by 15%, while vegetable cultivation increased by 33%.
The Gross Product Value increased by 15.27% on an inflation-adjusted basis. Net income increased by 21.43% overall. More than 50% of farmers reported additional income in the range of Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 3 lakh per year.
This shows that water conservation is not only an environmental intervention but also a livelihood and rural prosperity intervention.
Community Ownership and Maintenance
A major strength of the programme is the high level of community participation. According to the nomination document, 97.9% of community members expressed willingness to join maintenance groups.
This is important because many water conservation projects fail when there is no local ownership after implementation. TVS SST’s model addresses this gap by building local responsibility and institutional mechanisms for maintenance.
The programme also shows a demonstration effect. Successful restoration in one village inspires neighbouring villages to identify their own neglected water bodies and seek restoration.
Wildlife-Centric Water Conservation
The Trust’s water work also includes wildlife-focused interventions. The nomination document mentions the renovation of six water conservation troughs inside forest areas around the Hosur cluster, benefiting elephants and cattle by ensuring water availability.
The Trust also supported the formation and strengthening of four percolation ponds within forest regions of Hosur and Karnataka clusters. These interventions help provide reliable water sources for wildlife and contribute to reducing human-animal conflict.
The initiative also includes river restoration work. The Trust has undertaken cleaning and partial restoration of two rivers in Thirukkurungudi and two rivers in Venkatagiri.
These interventions aim to improve flow velocity, enhance carrying capacity, support decontamination and contribute to ecological rejuvenation.
A Scalable Model for Rural India
The Water Positivity Award 2026 recognises TVS Srinivasan Services Trust’s ability to build a scalable and replicable water conservation model.
Across rural India, many tanks, ponds, channels and traditional irrigation structures remain underutilised because of neglect, siltation and weak maintenance. TVS SST’s model demonstrates that these structures can be revived through a combination of community participation, scientific planning and local governance.
The initiative proves that CSR-led water conservation can go beyond asset creation. It can build community ownership, improve livelihoods, strengthen local institutions and create long-term environmental impact.
Before-and-After Evidence of Restoration
The nomination document also includes before-and-after visuals of restoration work in Tamil Nadu. On page 7, the document shows the transformation of Periyakulam WRD Tank in Thirukkurungudi, Tirunelveli district, where partial desilting of 79,000 cubic metres was carried out.
It also shows restoration work at Mel Eri, Thuranchikuppam village, Jawadhu Hills, Tirupattur district, where partial desilting of 9,900 cubic metres was undertaken during 2023–24. These images visually demonstrate the scale and visible impact of the Trust’s water conservation interventions.
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