Ujjain: As of today Malwa is most thirsty region in the country where hundreds of factories are shutting down for lack of water. And in a situation where people are getting only 15 minutes of water every 21 days, it is impossible to keep them running.
The Grasim textile unit in Ujjain, which was running continuously for 50 years, stopped all operations last week.
"The factory has shut down due to water scarcity," said Raju Nayan , Vice President, Grasim Industrial Units.
Its workforce of 5,000 workers, largest in Ujjain, has been put on dole.
Similar water-intensive units like paper mills, tanneries and food-processing factories, which are big employment generators in the region, are closing down every day. Their numbers are running into hundreds.
"People are dying for water. How can we give water to factories?" Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said.
In past years rainfall had been scanty in Malwa, forcing people to turn to underground water overuse, which has led to a very sharp depletion in the ground water table -- almost a 100 feet every year.
Right now ground water can be reached only at a shocking depth of 610 feet, which is almost unreachable.
Every household in the region is desperately dependent on water tankers, which are not able to cope with the demand. In Malwa, everyone is waiting for the rain.