Presently, Indians living in rural areas are dependent on local water sources, such as springs and bore-wells, which are often located several miles away from settlements.

India's state-owned aerospace and defence company, Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL), unveiled an atmospheric water generator (AWG) on Thursday. The device is capable of generating drinking water directly from particles of moisture present in the atmosphere.

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Defence PSU BEL launches atmospheric water generator safe drinking water- from air https://t.co/DX92RXD8pr via @delhiNCRnews.in — Prasoon Pant (@PrasoonPant) February 21, 2019

The firm aims to supply these machines across the country in a bid to tackle water shortages.



BEL's AWG employs a novel technology to extract water from the humidity present in the atmosphere and purify it, the company said.

"It uses heat exchange for condensing the atmospheric moisture to produce pure, safe and clean potable water. The AWG comes with a Mineralisation Unit, which is used to add minerals which are required to make the water potable," a BEL statement reads.

The company has launched a few variants of the product with different capacities so consumers can purchase as per their requirements. The AWG is configurable in static and mobile versions, and is available in 30 litres/day, 100 litres/day, 500 litres/day and 1,000 litres/day capacities.

In addition to its countless civilian applications, the machine could also come in handy for military personnel posted in rural locations.

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India's drinking water crisis is mainly attributed to factors such as excessive demand compounded by mismanaged water resources, erratic weather patterns and climate change.