Chakur Taluka in the Marathwada region of Latur is experiencing one of the driest summers in a hundred years as is affirmed by its groundwater sources. Two of the oldest wells in Wadval Nagnath village in the area has gone dry for the first time in a hundred years, reports Times of India.
At least eighty other wells, old as well as new, are close to drying up, while very few borewells are able to function properly.
The owners have decided not to use the water for their crops and have opened the wells to the public.Sarpanch Shilpatai Rajkumar Bendke
Water in many wells has turned muddy and is no longer drinkable. There are other wells which are still a source of potable water, but sometimes people slip and fall in them. The Sarpanch says they have managed to rescue everyone so far.
The village with a population of 10,000 is given two tankers of water every day. Bendke comments on it and says:
We store the water, it is then pumped into the overhead tank. It is supplied to the village for a few minutes. But it isn’t enough.Sarpanch Shilpatai Rajkumar Bendke
Water shortages are not an anomaly in India, especially in the summer months of April to June. However, decades of water wastage, failure to implement water conservation practices and a significant fall in monsoon rains has aggravated the water shortage in Latur in an unprecedented manner.
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