Indore’s Water Goddesses

Indore’s Water Goddesses

What if you only had water service to your house 30 minutes a day? What would you do and how would you feel? That’s what many of Indore’s most vulnerable citizens contend with every day.

This week, Zack, Maco and I, accompanied by representatives from India@75, our host NGO, made several field trips in to Indore’s most vulnerable communities. Five of the six communities we visited are characterized as slums. Five thousand to 15,000 residents live in a community. A family of six can live in one 10 ft x 10 ft room.

Indore is hot, dry and dusty. Water is scarce. The communities must organize to prove to the local municipal government that they can maintain a well or taps that will be provided.  This responsibility usually falls to the women who care for the children; cook the meals and who previously had to walk several kilometers from their homes to fetch enough water to last a few days.

Some communities still operate this way, depending on water tankers for all or some of their water. 



You might think with all that life would be bleak, it’s not necessarily so. We meet several amazing women this week. They are leaders who have organized their communities to convince the municipality that they can care for the wells, collect the fees (usually RU50 per month per family) and teach the community members good water practices that will improve the health and well being of their families.

Again, our meetings were in Hindi with an interpreter. Their determination and pride transcended any language difference. I call these women the goddesses of Indore’s water. It was a privilege to meet them and I hope that the work we do will enable them to empower others to cooperate and organize, for there are several hundred thousand people living in   
Indore’s slums.  Namaste.   

Tagged: #ibmcsc india