In Jharkhand's Deoghar, A Hospital Without Water

Deoghar, Jharkhand: For three days now, Farhud Ahmed, admitted for dehydration to the Sadar Hospital in Jharkhand's Deoghar town, has made daily trips back home each morning to bathe and use the toilet despite doctors advising him complete bed rest.

Mr Ahmed has no choice. Deoghar's biggest government hospital has no water except in the intensive care unit or ICU and the emergency ward. Jharkhand is in the grip a drought and with summer setting in water is at a premium across the state, not just in Deoghar.

"I live close by. So in the morning I go home. But, what about those who have come from far? It is a terrible situation," said Mr Ahmed.

Hospital authorities say the municipal corporation supplies water only once or twice a week. "There is no water in the whole city, and the hospital is within the city isn't it? We have made alternative arrangements but it is not enough for us," said Dr SC Jha, in-charge of government hospitals in Deoghar. Though he did not specify what these arrangements were.
 
Jharkhand declared a drought in December 2015. A week ago, the Jharkhand government said there is an emergency situation in the state over shortage of water. Water levels in the dams and reservoirs across the state are half of what they should be at this time of the year, or even lower.

On Saturday, Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das visited three dams near Ranchi. Officials in Jharkhand's water supply department have been asked to make arrangements to increase storage capacity at reservoirs across the state. The government is hoping a good monsoon will help store more water. But, that relief is at least a few months away.

Deoghar has over 36,000 households. Lakhs of pilgrims also visit a famous temple in the town each year. A recent study conducted in the city said ground water levels have dropped three metres in just three years. A decade ago, the depletion would be in centimetres annually, the study said.