From Scarcity to Sufficiency: A Story of Transformation of Water Resources

Kiran Shrirang Shinde

Hello! My name is Kiran Shinde. This story began during my fieldwork (rural practicum) in Chitori Khurd, a small village in the Shivpuri district of Madhya Pradesh. During that time, our team worked on collectivising, capacity development, and livelihood promotion among the Saharia Community (PVTG- Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups). In the village, whenever we tried to interact with the children, women, and young people–they used to tell us that ‘water is our biggest problem’. After building a good rapport with the youth, they frequently requested us to do something to solve the water issue. During the Situational Analysis, we observed women in the Sahariya community were spending half their day fetching water from far away.

I observed that water scarcity was a significant issue in the village and a hindrance to the progress of the community, particularly for women & children. When I used to play games with the children, I observed that many of the children there had rashes and skin disorders. When I was told about this by Sarpanch Pati (husband of the Sarpanch), I got a very negative reply. He said,“Aree Sahab ye Adivasi bachhe nahate nahi hai, isliye ye sab hota hai.” But upon observation, I noticed that they don’t even have a bathing habit. The reason is that water is not easily available. Due to this, many health problems are seen there.

Water resources were available in the village by the government, but some of the dominant communities there had control over it. When discussing this with a Saharan (Sahariya woman), she said, “Hame Pani bharne ke liye unke Ghar ka Kam karna padta hai, isliye ham waha se Pani nahi bharte.” Here I saw how caste works. Some upper caste people there had taken control over the government hand pump of ‘Jal Jeevan Mission’ and brought it home.

Our fieldwork period was coming to an end. When I shared this issue of water in the village with my team members, they responded negatively. But ignoring such a big (but easily solvable ) problem of tribals was not morally acceptable to me. After working on the goal and objective of our team, in the last two days, I thoroughly inspected the hand pump in that village. While talking with the tribal youth, they told me about the hand pump problem and the approximate cost to repair it.

I built trust with them, prepared a complaint application to solve this issue with their participation & submitted it to the Shivpuri district collector. My friend Parimal was also with me while going there. During this step, I faced many difficulties, as many people doubted me, Because the area of ‘Kanha Tiger Reserve’ (MP) is going to increase, they feel that many tribal people are likely to be displaced. So they were scared to give signatures or thumbprints on any paper because of that fear. But some tribal youth (those who could read) accompanied me. It was easy for me to explain the matter to the elders.

After that, our rural practicum ended, and all team members returned to their homes. But I was in touch with the Sahariya youth on the phone. The water problem of the villagers still needs to be solved.

So I followed up by filing an RTI (Right To Information) and correspondence with the Shivpuri collector. But I needed to get the proper answer and action. Then I made a fresh complaint to the Government of India Administrative Reform & Public Grievance department and the issue gained momentum. As soon as I started following up on that complaint, many calls from MP government officials began coming. Some hand pumps closed in Chitori Khurd village are plagued with significant issues, while some of the hand pumps have technical problems like faulty wires and the repair of motors.

On 8th April 2023, the department concerned repaired the hand pumps in the village and started some hand pumps. Living in Dombivli (Thane district of Maharashtra), it took me almost six months to solve this water problem in a village in Madhya Pradesh state. But I felt satisfied that the hand pump, which was closed, got water in such a hot summer season. The damaged hand pump in the village has been repaired this summer, supporting Sahariya Tribal women. I am pleased to say that the water struggle of the Sahariya people in Chitori Khurd has been reduced.

We need to take action against the problem instead of just crying about it. Solving civic problems is the responsibility of all of us. Despite your numerous challenges, your consistency and diligent follow-up will yield fruitful results.

The happiness derived from these accomplishments is beyond words.