With summer setting in, water crisis hits Agra

From the past few weeks, dozens of localities in Agra are facing acute water shortage. The situation is likely to worsen as there is not enough water in the storage tanks. Besides, the shortage of private water tankers has added to the woes of residents.

"From last many years, there is a problem of water shortage in the area. We are all labourers and spending Rs 50 every day for water is difficult for us. The administration says they will make Agra a smart city but till now we do not have access to water," said Rakhi, a daily wage labourer living in Agra.

"Even for drinking water, we have to spend Rs 20 to Rs 30 daily. Each drum of water costs Rs 30. The government must step up its work and must provide us at least clean drinking water," said another daily wage labourer.

The city administration has assured that they will resolve the water crisis within a span of a few days by making adequate arrangements for the locals.

"I accept that there is a huge water crisis in the city. All our officials are working on the same problem to resolve it. In one of the areas, there is no water pipeline. We will supply Ganga water to the city within a span of two months. I believe that once this is done, sufficient water supply can be resumed and people will not face any problems," said Naveen Jain, Agra mayor.

Besides Agra, with mercury on the rise across the nation, residents of Mehboob Nagar are also facing hardships due to water shortage in the area. The crisis has also returned to haunt the people of Latur. What further worsens the situation here is the scanty rain the district receives every year. People's only source of water is a tanker which reaches them, but not so frequently.