Dry Delhi – Where Water Comes at a Price

With many parts of Delhi facing water scarcity, here's a look at how people living in slums survive the summers.

A little girl carrying a  can of water back home.

(Photo Credit: Ribhu Chatterjee/The Quint) 

Every summer, Delhi reels under a perennial water crisis. The drying Yamuna and extreme summers are making matters worse with each passing year.

A group of women waiting for a water tanker.

A woman setting up a pipe under the tanker.

A boy standing in front of the tanker to collect water first, before it is opened for all.

I spent two days in two urban slums in Delhi – Kusumpahari and Sanjay Gandhi Camp. These areas don't have piped water supply and depend on tankers for drinking water.

Empty tubs propped up against a house.

A woman carrying a pipe before the tanker's arrival.

People tie up their cans with a chain to ensure they're not stolen.

A woman making space for her can in the long line of cans waiting to be filled.

The tanker comes every day but there's no fixed time for its arrival. It's mostly the women who spend hours just waiting for the tanker to arrive; in fact, their whole day revolves around the tanker's arrival.

The rush for the water.

A maze of pipes protrudes out of the tanker. 

Here, everyone lends a helping hand to get the cans filled with water.

Every time a tanker arrives, chaos ensues. 

More than 600 families live in this slum, and for them, one tanker is just not enough. Throughout the day, almost 35 tankers come to these areas to provide potable water.

Every single drop is precious.

Women carrying the filled cans back home.