Drought and overuse leave the poor without water in Rajshahi district

Members of the Catholic parish in Mundumala formed a human chain to get the authorities to intervene. As groundwater drops, wells have run dry; as a result, drinking water has become more and more expensive. Mithusilak Murmu, a Christian writer, told AsiaNews that water supplies were plentiful in the past, but intensive fish farming has contributed to the crisis.

Rajshahi (AsiaNews) – For the past two months, the members of St John Mary Vianney parish in Mundumala, a village north of Rajshahi, have had to cope with a severe shortage in drinking water.

For this reason, about 50 of them travelled to Rajshahi where they formed a human chain to alert the authorities and demand they take action, carrying signs that said: “We want water to save our lives”.

"To collect safe drinking water, we have to go a kilometre away, but many times we cannot get water because there is none,” said Chichilia Hembrom, a Catholic who chairs the Adivasi Mahali Bamboo-Cane Development Organisation and the Barendra Region Youth Organisation.

“We women face various problems, such as back and leg pain, and have to collect water from other sources,” she added.

For many people who earn a living making products from cane and bamboo, the current price, 300 thaka (US$ 2.80), is too much. About 500 people in the village have to deal with water shortages.

Sontosh Hembrom, another Catholic, told AsiaNews that rainfall and groundwater dropped to alarming levels. Wells are running dry.

”We have to go to another village where water pumps are used for irrigation,” he explained. “We tribal residents are in need and do not have the means to buy these machines.”

In the Barendra region, fresh water was readily available until a few decades ago, said Mithusilak Murmu, a Christian writer, speaking to AsiaNews.

“Every village had a well that was the hope of its people. Farmers could drink water from the ponds because it was clean and safe,” he explained.

“Now fish farming is making water unfit for human consumption. A water pump and a tank have been installed and people have to pay more on food and water. This is the biggest challenge for tribal and marginal communities in the Barendra area.”

In light of the situation, Christians have asked the authorities to take effective measures, informing public opinion and researching this issue.

After the human chain, a memorandum was handed over to the Rajshahi district commissioner asking for the speedy drilling of deeper wells, and giving marginalised people free access to government ponds.

The demands also include upgrading the ponds so that water could be used for both daily activities and agriculture.

• Climate change