GIRIDIH DISTRICT, JHARKHAND: Meet Neelam, a 17-year-old girl from a small rural village called Tilaiboni in Giridih district of Jharkhand. She is one of the two children born to an under-resourced family. Her seven-member family consists of her parents, her brother and his wife along with their two children. Their only source of income is her brother’s seasonal employment as a farm labourer and sometimes as a brick kiln worker. Her family owns a tiny agricultural land which is insufficient to fulfil the requirement of their daily life.
Neelam used to go to school regularly before the pandemic. However, when the pandemic hit and the classes were conducted online, she could not continue her studies as she did not have the means to attend online classes. During the pandemic, her parents fell sick, and she started helping with household chores. One of her main chores was to fetch water from a water source that is a few kilometres away from her house. She had to cross the rough terrain on foot, multiple times in a day just so that her family could have access to water. It got worse during the summers when the water level reduced, and she had to stand in a queue for long hours. Most of the water points were dry and the ones that were functional, were found with potential sanitary risk. It became a struggle for Neelam and her family to manage their day-to-day activities due to extremely high water stress. According to the National Sample Survey Organisation survey, in Jharkhand, Neelam’s state, it takes women 40 minutes one way to haul water, without taking into account the waiting time.
Clean Water for a Better Tomorrow
When Operation Blessing learnt the dire need of clean drinking water in Neelam’s village, the team dug a well and constructed a handpump for the whole community. The well provides a reliable and ample supply of water for drinking, home use, to grow crops and for the livestock. Much to Neelam’s relief, she has taken admission and returned to school to continue her studies. Now, she can lay aside the burden of the constant need for water and focus on her studies. She is overjoyed that her life has changed for the better and the children in her village can also go back to school just like her.
Neelam says, “With the new handpump installed just 10 metres away from my doorstep, I feel blessed to fetch water that is not too far away. I was hoping to go back to school and my prayers have been answered through this well. Just a few months ago, my parents were planning to marry me off but my determination to continue my studies made them change their mind”.
