How this drought-stricken Rajasthan village gets water by digging a hole every two days

Groundwater levels are falling at an alarming rate, exacerbating the problem

Jaipur:

As summer approaches, villagers in some of the driest areas of Rajasthan are digging into groundwater.

Only 10% of this desert state can be classified as water resources. The remaining 90% relies on groundwater for drinking and irrigation.

Groundwater levels are falling at an alarming rate, adding to the problem.

Research shows that groundwater levels in Rajasthan are falling by one meter every year. The study shows that of the 302 areas identified as groundwater sources, at least 219 are overexploited.

Sixty kilometers ahead of the city of Sanchore in southern Rajasthan state, hundreds of residents have begun digging for water. When the pit reaches a depth of 10 feet, it begins to fill with water. Soon, a group of people rushed in carrying pots and pans.

The water is drinkable for two days before turning into salt water. Many people, especially women, rushed in to get as much water as possible.

“The water is salty. We complained to the authorities but no one helped us. If we have money, we buy it from water tankers, otherwise we have no choice but to use the water,” resident Umar Bhai Umar Bhai told New Delhi TV.

Deficient monsoon last year made the problem worse and things are not going to get better this summer.

“I am 35 years old. We ask for drinking water. Sometimes, we give water to the animals,” said Jumma Khan, another resident.

At least a dozen villages in Chitawana Tehsil, Sanchoor, face acute drinking water shortage. The Narmada Canal came to the region in 2008. It supplies drinking water to 500 villages in the region as well as Jallore and Sanjore, but this tehsil, where most residents are wage workers, has been neglected.

Since the water table is salty, the only way to obtain drinking water is to dig pits. In two days, villagers will have to dig a new hole to get drinking water.

The Churu district of northwestern Rajasthan has received drinking water supply under the Jal Jeevan Mission. There are water taps in the village of Rajtha here too, but most are still dry. Villagers said they had no choice but to spend what little money they had to buy from tankers.

In Bayana in Bharatpur in eastern Rajasthan, Papalipura village does not have a single source of water. There is a well, but the water is not drinkable. Villagers walk 3 kilometers to the Uttar Pradesh border to collect water from another village.