In Denganmal, a village in western Maharashtra, men have taken on several wives. And the reason for it will surprise you. It’s to fetch water.
In drought-hit Denganmal, there are no taps. The only drinking water comes from two wells at the foot of a nearby rocky hill, a spot so crowded that the sweltering walk and wait can take hours.
For day labourer Sakharam Bhagat, as for many others in the hamlet some 140 km (85 miles) from Mumbai, the answer was a ‘water wife’. Bhagat, 66, now has three wives, two of whom he married solely to ensure that his household has water to drink and cook.
“I had to have someone to bring us water, and marrying again was the only option,” Bhagat told Reuters. “My first wife was busy with the kids. When my second wife fell sick and was unable to fetch water, I married a third.”
In Denganmal, a cluster of about 100 thatched houses set on an expanse of barren land, most men work as farm labourers, barely earning the minimum wage. Marrying for water has been the norm here for many years, villagers said.
Many of these women are either widows or abandoned and therefore happy at the prospect of being picked for a wife, even if only second or third. These women have been labelled ‘water wives’.
People who think women are delicate creatures, the weaker sex etcetera, and therefore, not qualified for many jobs, would likely change their opinion once they see women outside the urban setting. In a pastoral set up, while men tend to fields and cattle for their daily earnings, they do little else. The real hard jobs are actually done by women. In remote villages, all the women walk several kilometers everyday just to fetch watch and firewood.
These water wives carry heavy loads of water over long distances several times a day. They take on this hardship as part of their duties to their husband’s family. This practice leads to many health issues among these women, like neck and spinal injuries, which is very common.
None of these situations would occur if the government came up with a solution to their water woes. In 2013, western Maharashtra faced its worst drought yet in four decades and the consequences are still felt. But there is little relief for the people still. And little relief for the women too.
Perhaps NGOs could step in with mini-hydel projects and social campaigns against practices like polygamy. Better more taps, with running water, than more wives.
Image Courtesy: Reuters
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