To strengthen the village level water quality testing teams, WASMO recently organised orientation trainings in a campaign mode for Gram Mitras. This orientation campaign which began on 10 September, 2007 will continue till the end of the month and will cover all the 222 blocks of the state. In a short span of 15 days, the orientation programmes have been carried out in 113 blocks and were attended by 6600 people from 4116 villages.

Under the National Rural Drinking Water Quality Monitoring and Surveillance programme, to bring about decentralization in water quality monitoring and surveillance, a water quality testing team (separate from the Pani Samiti) is being formed in each village. This team consists of aanganwadi worker, school teacher, an educated youth, a student from the local school, Panchayat member and others. In addition the health worker is also to be included in the team. The Gujarat Jalseva Training Institute (GJTI), the State Referral Institute is in the process of procuring water quality field testing kits for distribution to the villages. The cost of each kit about Rs. 10,000, it has reagent stock to last for about two years and can be used for testing of eight different parameters. 

 The Gram Mitra – Arogya and Vikas are being involved in the village water quality teams and for this block level orientation training is being organised in coordination with the block level functionaries and with the support of NGOs. The topics covered in the training were:
 relation between water and health;
 relation between health and environmental sanitation, household sanitation and personal hygiene;
 demonstration of the appropriate use of the water quality field testing kits and its maintenance, so that the Gram Mitras become conversant with its use

As a hands on exercise, the Gram Mitras were asked to get one sample from a drinking water source in the village along with the sanitary survey of that source. During the training the testing of these samples was done and the link between the sanitary situation around the source (from the sanitary survey report) and the quality of water was established.

In May 2007, the GoG appointed five Gram Mitras namely, Gram Mitra-Krishi, Gram Mitra-Shikshan, Gram Mitra-Arogya, Gram Mitra-Vikas and Gram Mitra-Jan Kalyan in each village of the state. These Gram Mitras provide honorary services in the villages, apart from carrying out their own regular occupations, for the benefit of economic and social development of the villages. The advantage of involving the Gram Mitras is that they are relatively young (most of them below 22 years) and can be molded according to the requirements of the programme. They also have lesser social obligations due to which they are able to devote time for village development activities.