Water Crisis in Bihar: Women Make 10 Daily Trips for Drinking Water in Awarhiya Village

Women in Awarhiya village endure long walks of 2 kilometers twice daily to secure water for their families.

Shankar Oraon straps 20-litre jerrycans to his bicycle before embarking on a two-kilometer journey to reach the riverbank. At his destination stands a solitary hand pump, the only water source serving the entire Awarhiya village in Bihar's West Champaran district. Oraon vigorously operates the pump handle, filling his containers before returning home. This exhausting round trip is one he repeats approximately ten times each day to meet his family's water needs.

"This isn't something I do by choice—it's absolutely essential. Living without water access is simply unimaginable," Oraon explains.

The situation proves even more challenging for women like Sangeeta Devi, who must traverse the entire distance to the riverbank on foot, balancing heavy water containers on their heads during the return journey.

While male villagers depart for daily wage employment, the responsibility of securing water falls squarely on women's shoulders. They leave their homes before sunrise, walk to the distant riverbank, fill 20-litre vessels, and carefully balance them on their heads for the return journey. This grueling routine continues throughout the day, from early morning until dusk.

"We face tremendous hardship. Twice daily, we walk 2 kilometers each way to collect water for our families," Sangeeta Devi describes.

This is the reality for Awarhiya village, home to approximately 80 households and 500 residents, which lacks even a single functional handpump or government-provided water source.

According to Shri Kishun, interviewed while returning from the riverbank, villagers have endured these harsh conditions for eight to nine years now.

"Our village doesn't have a single hand pump," he stated.

Villagers claim they've repeatedly appealed to local administration for handpumps and piped water infrastructure, yet no meaningful solution has materialized. In protest of this neglect, they even boycotted voting during recent Assembly Elections.

Administrative officials explain that Awarhiya village consists primarily of displaced families, and its proximity to the Valmiki Tiger Reserve necessitates Forest Department approval for any infrastructure development. They further state that a resettlement proposal was previously offered to residents, which was declined.

(With inputs from Bindeshwar Kumar)