Manjra and Dudhna rivers run dry; Jat gets water once in eight days, Sangli uses 70 tankers

The Manjra river, which was in devastating flood last year, is hard to recognise this year. Once brimming to its banks, its bed now has large cracks in the ground. The Manjra, which passes near Kalamb town, has dried up completely. Last year the problem was floods; this year it is a water famine. The state of the river points to a deepening water crisis in Dharashiv in the coming days.

Jat town in Sangli district is also struggling with a water shortage. Water is supplied there once in eight days. At present, 70 tankers are delivering water to 66 villages and 479 hamlets in the district, where more than 1,43,000 people are affected.

In Parbhani, the bed of the Dudhna river has dried up completely, with not a drop of water left in it. Farmers have been forced to dig pits in the riverbed to get water. The question of drinking water has become serious for people in 35 to 40 villages that depend on the Dudhna.