High and dry in Bihar's Amaraha

The pumps have run dry in Amaraha village. And hope is fading fast the residents of this village located 45 kilometres from Patna.

Says villager Umesh Kumar: "Water has dried up in most areas around the village."

In fact, there is only one handpump in Amraha for about 400 residents. And caste politics is already muddying the simmering water war here. The handpumps are mostly near upper caste homes. Some villagers say they don't allow others to use them.

Manju Devi has a pump near her house and she justifies rationing of water. "I m not stopping anyone from drawing water here. But it is completely unfair of people to come here and take a bath."

Blockades are becoming common in neighbouring Jharkhand. The farmers here are demanding they be included in the Below Poverty Line list -- even though they don't qualify --  so that they get benefits like cheaper grains and pulses. They want the government to take quick action to help them fight the drought.

But there doesn't seem to be any silver lining in sight.