Gul Bahao

Into the 21st century with new ideas from Gul Bahao

Paaki Paani explained at PMA

Yesterday Gul Bahao’s Nargis Latif spoke at a gathering organized by the Gastroenterology Association and the Pakistan Medical Association at the P.M.A house. The gathering consisted mostly of medical students and laymen. Nargis observed that this meeting is being held on the eve of the World Environment day for which Gul Bahao has a special message.

She began by saying that there is lot of hue and cry being raised at the spread of infectious diseases but little effort to find solutions. She however commended the Vice Chancellor of the Dow University of Health sciences who declared at a recent conference that “Diseases which spread through the consumption of contaminated water can be controlled by exposing water to the sun.”

Nargis said that eight years ago she was trying to find out the cure for diarrhea and other waterborne diseases using this very same principle. The challenge before her was what kind of water container to use as conventional containers like the earthenware pot, the cooler, metal utensils etc are opaque so that sunlight cannot pass through them and if their lids are removed contamination in the surroundings would freely enter the vessel. No doubt glass bottles with their corks on were available but with house holds with children, using them would be very inconvenient, she thought.

Gul Bahao’s managing trustee said that the best solution she discovered was the transparent plastic water bottle for purifying water. She said she fills these bottles up with tap water and then puts them in the sunlight for a few hours and drinks the water after cooling it. She called it Paaki Paani, meaning pure water. The advantage of the methodology is its superiority to boiling water. In this case unlike boiling water, Paaki Paani retains its mineral content while the germs are killed. After using this water, Nargis said that she who used to be patient of diarrhea was completely cured.

Later on, as part of Gul Bahao’s campaign her organization took it upon itself to spread the idea. Several people have reported good results after drinking Paaki Paani. These include individuals suffering from diarrhea; People journeying by road; little children who had to be hospitalized for dehydration and people living in “kutchi abadis”.

Someone in the audience asked what is the scientific rationale behind this technique and why no one had thought about it earlier on. To this Nargis replied that it is the ultra violet rays from the sun which are germicidal. I.e. it kills all kinds of bacteria and viruses thus making the water fit for consumption.

To the second question Nargis replied that sunshine is not available in abundance everywhere. This is the reason that people in the west have to produce ultraviolet rays of the sun artificially in their water purifying systems. We in the east and especially in Pakistan are fortunate to have plenty of sunshine of long duration most of the year. Hence Paaki Paani is a very useful method of water purification. The managing trustee of Gul Bahao appealed to the audience to propagate the idea of Paaki Paani as this will get rid of more than half the diseases our people especially our children are suffering from. She said that this is one big way of earning “sawab”.

In another statement on the occasion of environment day Nargis Latif has appealed to the Pakistan media to take up the issue of Paaki Paani. Clean water is one of the biggest health issues in Pakistan and this simple technique provides an excellent solution. Moreover Gul Bahao has for the last thirteen years being working on different aspects of the environment and has come up with systems and products, which provide answers to several problems. Research is the key to our problems and by the grace of God Gul Bahao has spent more than six crore rupees in its research program. Only in 2002 its expenditure was around 1 crore and 20 lacs. Despite the spending the innovations are very simple and cheap. These include “Safai/Kamai bank”, “City Farms”, “Instant Compost”, “Chandi Ghar” and “Fuel Pack” and the list keeps on increasing.

Gul Bahao’s CEO gives interview to ARY One World Channel

Gul Bahao’s research work on water purification called Paki Paani has been vindicated said Nargis Latif in an interview she gave on “Ba Khabar Sawera” ARY One World Channel. She said that the Vice Chancellor of the Dow University of Health Sciences at a press conference held recently said that “Diseases which spread through consumption of contaminated water can be controlled by exposing water to the Sun.”

This methodology Nargis Latif said was named Paaki Paani by Gul Bahao in the year 2007 and ever since it has been advocating this through pamphlets, through the media, lectures, exhibitions and through word of mouth. Picking up a mineral water bottle filled with water she said this should be put out in the sun for a few hours cooled, and then drunk. This way ultraviolet rays of the sun will pass through the water and kill the germs while keeping the minerals intact. Now Nargis said poor people will be having free access to mineral water. She said she is trying to persuade a manufacturer of P.E.T bottles to increase their manufacture so that the 16 crore people of Pakistan can make their own germ free mineral water.

The head of Gul Bahao giving a detailed description of the different innovations of Gul Bahao said that the latest one, the “Fuel Pack” has the potential of solving the city’s electricity problem. Pointing to a simple sketch she had before her she described how “Fuel Pack” could be used for producing steam in boilers which could be connected to turbines which again would be connected to generators to produce electricity. The advantage of the “Fuel Pack”, a form of thermal energy Nargis said was their easy availability and cost effectiveness as they are made from industrial waste. These “Fuel Packs” she said have a high burning quality minus toxic fumes.

In the detailed program lasting 40 minutes the head of Gul Bahao also talked about the Chandi Ghar and the Mobile Toilet. This again she said was a unique innovation. Talking about mobile toilet she said it has:

  • Complete privacy
  • Cleanliness unlike the public toilets
  • Sheer convenience – it is foldable

It is simply a Frigidaire box covered inside and outside with Panaflex. Its underlying principle is that human filth is food for plants and trees and hence it is best that people relieve themselves in unpaved land so that there is fewer burdens on the sewage system.

Nargis Latif said that her innovations are devised to revive the economy of the city. These include the Safai/Kamai bank and the Chandi Ghar or alternative housing

The compere of the program asked Nargis Latif why her innovations are not known to the people. “Is the media to blame?” She asked. To this Nargis Latif replied that the trend is to show negative things happening in the society but that is not news because that is what is happening all the time. Real news she said is to extricate the good and the positive even if it is small or far away.

Gul Bahao’s seminar at Avari Hotel advocates innovations in the field of environment

Yesterday, Gul Bahao held a meeting at the hotel Avari to bring together people from various organizations to help strengthen its campaign of “Karachi’s Gift to the world” which is in fact advocating Gul Bahao’s research work consisting of environment related innovations. Prominent among those who attended were Rezwana Khan from NGORC

Ali Chaudry a businessman, Mr. Shamsul Haq Memon , a senior Bureaucrat and former Director General EPA Sindh, Sabiha Shah and Abdul Rahim Moosavi from Lyari Community Development and Nuzhat Siddiqui, environmentalist from WWF, Rana Asif Habib from Initiator Human Development Foundation and Mohammad Khalid from the SDSSP, government of Sindh.

The meeting started with the reading of the Urdu translation of the holy Quran, copies of which had been distributed before hand among the participants. Someone remarked that this is how the Christians used to read from the bible. To this another participant remarked that this could be the reason behind the European renaissance i.e. reading their holy scriptures in their own languages.

Explaining the purpose of holding the meeting, Gul Bahao’s Nargis Latif said that a think tank or discussion forum is necessary to discuss the crucial link between environment and the economy. Some of the stance of the participants however was that there were already several forums working in the city.

Mr. Shamsul Haq Memon said that he has been following Nargis Latif’s work for the last 10 years or so. “I have seen her working tirelessly, often with her hair all disheveled.” Now it is up to us to carry her mission forward … There is a big gap in research oriented activities. Nargis has tried to fill that gap.

Ali Chaudry dwelt at length on his proposal for raising funds for Gul Bahao through marketing of its prefabricated structures. According to him such philanthropists should be sought who could buy Gul Bahao’s prefabricated houses for as little as Rs. 10,000 (ten thousand) and donate them to the poor. However he said that our poor people are very conservative in their habits and special efforts would have to be made for them to adapt themselves to this new technology.

Nargis Latif said that there is a yawning gap between the formal and informal sectors of the economy just as there is a huge gap between the rich and the poor. Citing examples of Godhra in new Karachi and Machar Colony (near Sohrab Goth) she said that these reflect the innovation and dynamism of the informal economy. (However scavenging of waste material from the garbage dumps is not the answer to our solid waste management) On the other we have the formal sector with its educated people, local bodies, government and NGOs who are literate have modern equipment etc. have resources and more important have a system to follow. Unfortunately there is a wide gap between the two sectors that could otherwise benefit one another immensely and the society in general. It was decided by all that the forum would meet once a month.

Entrepreneurship and Gul Bahao lectured at IBA

Yesterday, Nargis Latif of Gul Bahao was invited as guest speaker by Mr. Sultan Raza faculty member of the Institute of Business Administration to speak to the students. After the opening remarks of Mr. Raza, a bouquet was presented to Nargis Latif. Nargis said that Gul Bahao’s thirteen years of research has yielded the slogan of “Karachi’s Gift to the world”. According to her these “gifts” include “Paaki Paani”, (water purifying method), Chandi Ghar (alternate housing), Instant Compost (organic fertilizer), fuel pack (alternate fertilizer). Nargis claimed that some individuals have even begun to plagiarize these innovations

Nargis revealed that Gul Bahao’s latest innovation Fuel Packs has come at a time when the issue of cheap fuel has become one of the greatest challenges. Giving details of this, Nargis said that the organization had a contract for collecting waste material from 200 Factories which enabled it to experiment. The result she said has come out in the shape of a block weighing 10-12 kilos of size 6x17x21 inches. The contents are mostly wood waste and other non toxic waste. It has been tried experimentally and gives best results in furnaces where it has shown to have a good burning quality.

Nargis said that the vast majority of people are still unfortunately not aware of Gul Bahao’s program. For this groundwork has been done to bring university students, faculty members, research workers, businessmen, professionals such as architects, social workers and N.G.O’s counselors and Nazims of UCs as well as government functionaries on one platform. The result she said will be the formation of a body which will support and monitor Gul Bahao’s working. The coming week Gul Bahao has announce a meeting of all these stakeholders at a local hotel.

Giving an example of businessmen seeking involvement in her programs she gave the example of a manufacturer of P.E.T bottles. She said that she approached the proprietor of ECO Pack that his bottles could be used by millions of people for purifying their drinking water by the simple technique called Paaki Paani, innovated by Gul Bahao. At the same time she said that good and cheap raw material for making these would come from the Safai Kamai banks, a concept given by Gul Bahao. Infact she said that the industry as a whole would gain tremendously from the Safai Kamai bank, which will provide the necessary raw material for the industry.

A student from the audience remarked that the Safai Kamai bank is in fact a copy of our Kabari system. Why does Gul Bahao claim it to be its own creation? To this Nargis Latif replied that just as the financial bank is in fact a modern version of the usurers business, the supermarket a modern version of the grocery shop, the Safai Kamai is the 21st century version of the Kabari. Nargis Latif said that it is a law of history that new ideas take time to be acceptable. The C.N.G or L.P.G gas for transport was not being taken seriously by the people for a long time. Similarly Gul Bahao’s innovations will have to go through the test of time.

The speaker regretted that there is an over emphasis on high tech. People forget that China’s economy today is in fact the end result of the simple technology developed during the socialist revolution, when hard work and creative thought was harnessed to revive the economy. Mao Tse Tung spoke of “Let a thousand flowers bloom”. Concluding Nargis Latif said Gul Bahao is going to give yet another slogan: “Zindagi Ban Jai Sasti aur Aasaan”

Chandi Ghar introduced at Rotary club Sunset Mellenium

On Saturday, Nargis Latif of Gul Bahao was invited to speak at the weekly meeting of the Rotary club, (sunset millennium) at Karachi’s Marriot hotel. The secretary Mr. Ahmed Ghulam Hussein introduced the speaker in the following words: “She is a life fellow of Ashoka Foundation, an American N.G.O. Her activities have been covered by BBC, ZEE T.V and most of the Pakistani channels, like ARY, Indus, P.T.V, AAJ, Sindh T.V etc.”

Without beating about the bush, Nargis said, her organization has come up with innovations which are “Karachi’s gift to the world”. “We are making history”, she said. These innovations include alternate housing (pre-fabricated housing made from plastic waste), alternate energy, garbage ‘n gold bank, water purify technique etc. “Let Karachi and its people own these innovations before the world takes them up”, she said. Gul Bahao has spent more than Rs 3 crores on these innovations, which are world class and which will make a name for Pakistan.

Nargis Latif said that a certain amount of interest has been generated amongst local entrepreneurs, real estate investors and business men in the “Chandi Ghar” or pre-fabricated housing. A well known business man, Mr. Siddique Skaikh has placed an order of a warehouse in “Landhi” and has even offered to market these “Chandi Ghars” in the future.

People in the interior of Sindh have shown a keen interest in these houses because of easy availability of land as well as the ease of putting up these structures. The latest development in this innovation is its insulation quality. The houses are very cool in summer and warm in winter, due to extensive use of aluminum foil.

During the talk Nargis was also asked questions about the environment. She said that these days there is a good deal of alarm being sounded in different forum about port Qasim and Karachi Port Trust in danger of being destroyed due to the pollution caused by the city’s sewage water. Nargis Latif said that now it has become absolutely necessary that the polluted water be stopped from entering the sea and rivers and that the sewage system is totally decentralized and the waste water is dealt with on an as is where is basis. This can only be done if trees and shrubs are grown along the sewage “Nallahs” to suck up the dirty water. Nargis said that aforestation in the cities should be linked up with sanitation. Fast growing trees may be grown for their wood which may be chopped occasionally to make room for more trees, while plantations should take place throughout the year. This way gutter water will be used up by shrubs and trees so that less and less of it falls into the rivers and seas. Also nurseries and gardens must be encouraged to use sewage water. Use of fresh water for horticulture must be discouraged.

Mr. Ahmed Bayat of the club while presenting his vote of thanks to the founder of Gul Bahao said that the club members would help to raise both funds and soft loans for the organization.