Farmers of Tiruchi district, which is in the grip of worst drought in recent times, have been forced to sell their cattle at half price.
Even during severe drought situations, delta areas, located along the Cauvery, would escape from the impact of drought due to good groundwater table.
Almost all areas in the district have been reeling under the grip of drought causing acute drinking water scarcity to the people.
Moreover, no water body has water for milch animals, sheep and goats to drink resulting distress sale of milch animals at half price.
Farmers, who have 5 to 6 milch animals, prefer to sell half of them.
“I have not come across such a worst drought in the last two decades.
I am not able to get green or dry fodder for the cattle.
I have recently sold three cows, out of six cows, for Rs.
10 a kg, dry fodder (paddy staw) had been supplied at just Rs.
Farmers, who had five milch animals, had been supplied 105 kg of dry fodder a week.

Berhampur reeling under water shortage.
Berhampur (odisha), Apr 27 The Silk City of Odisha is reeling under acute shortage of water with a reduction in water supply from multiple sources.
The city requires around 54 million litres of water daily but supply from multiple sources has dipped to 47 million litres a day, an official said.
In peak summer, the demand rises to as much as 70 million litres of water and wells and ponds dry up at that time.
Meanwhile, River Rushikulya, one of the main source of drinking water, is gradually drying up.
"Water from the Rushikulya comes from Madhapur, about 30 km from the city, which generaly supplies around 30 million litres a day to the city," Executive Engineer of Berhampur Public Health Engineering Department, Sitaram Panda, said.
At present, the water supply has reduced to 20 to 25 million litres per day, Panda said.
In the bid to cope with the shortage, Panda said, 34 water tankers have been pressed into service.
We also have plans to bore 140 tubewells in the town and install 125 water tanks," he said The water scarcity is also leading to frequent quarrels among people standing in long queues in front of tube wells and dry taps in several places.
This is a common scene in our locality where water supply is erratic," Bankim Mishra, a resident of Rama Nagara, said.

Rising temperature dries up wells, water projects across Odisha.
Kutra block with 16 gram panchayats (GPs) has a population of 80,000 and almost all the villages and hamlets are facing scarcity of drinking water.
Villagers are mostly dependent on tube wells, open wells and natural water streams.
A piped water supply project of Rural Water Supply & Sanitation (RWSS) at Panchara was rendered defunct after trial run in 2014 and a similar project at Biringatoli is also not functioning for the last couple of years.
Eight concrete reservoirs for round the clock water supply at Kutra block headquarters are also defunct for long.
At many dry pockets of the block, the situation is turning grim with tube wells not yielding enough water.
Locals said the administration should consider supplying water from three large pits of open cast dolomite and limestone mines at Katang to nearby areas.
Villagers of Baunspada, Andiapara, Bhogra and Jhirpani of Kiringsara GP, Kadopada, Birtola and Upartola village of Purkhapali GP, Jharangdipa, Jamupada, Baunspada, Malupada and Girjapada villages of Kutra GP, Toppopada, Majhipada of Kandeimunda GP, Khuntmunda village of Gangajal GP and many areas of Kandumunda and Rajabasa GPs are facing water scarcity.
Several piped water projects of RWSS are defunct.
Kutra BDO Jagannath Hanuman said the block has about 1,000 tube wells and the block has adequate funds to take up digging up of tube wells if required.

Water scarcity grips Gaza.
After the economical siege, the continuous military threats from the Israeli occupation forces and with no power supply, the people of Gaza are living in tough conditions; however, international reports are discussing Israel’s attempts to limit water supply.
Last week’s shutdown of Gaza’s only functioning power plant creates even more urgency, with the water utility warning that it does not have the fuel to run water and sanitation facilities when the power is off.
Almost 3,000 items needed to build infrastructure to meet the demand for water and sanitation are still waiting for approval to enter through the mechanism, which requires Israeli approval of projects as well as individual items.
Recent research by Oxfam found that just 16% of items submitted for approval through the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism (GRM) for the water sector have actually made it into Gaza, a damning success rate that mirrors the dynamics of the blockade itself.
In the wake of the devastation in Gaza in 2014, the UN brokered an agreement — the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism (GRM) — between the Palestinian Authority and the government of Israel, so construction materials could enter Gaza more easily.
This has helped repair most of the water and sanitation infrastructure that was damaged almost three years ago.
The Water Authority in Gaza warned of the gravity of the electricity crisis on the water and sanitation system in the Gaza Strip and stressed that the repeated power outages foreshadow a real crisis.
If funding for fuel is not secured immediately, Gaza’s 14 public hospitals will be forced to partially or completely close essential services, putting thousands of patient lives at risk, according to the World Health Organisation.
The spokesperson of the health ministry said the Palestinian hospitals are in a dire situation due to the power and fuel shortage which led to operating the second level of generators in hospitals.

Blowing Israel’s aqua-shenanigans out of the water.
High up on Israel’s list of fabricated and otherwise shamelessly embellished achievements is that of having allegedly “made the desert bloom” promptly after setting up shop on usurped Palestinian land in 1948.
Never mind that Palestine wasn’t exactly a desert – or that “blooming” techniques involved mass slaughter as well as plenty of ecological devastation.
Of course, some might argue that Israel has enjoyed an unfair competitive advantage in the water realm given that it has been able to dominate access to the valuable resource by diverting regional waterways in its favour and literally hijacking Palestinian aquifers.
Now, Israel is once again making disingenuous waves through the Israeli firm Water-Gen – which, a recent obsequious dispatch in the Times of Israel informs us, is “look[ing] to quench global thirst” by extracting water from air.
The Post reports on the dire situation in the Gaza Strip, where fresh water is “a scarce commodity” and where recurring electricity crises are not helped by the fact that “damage from the Israeli bombing of the [Gaza power] plant in 2014 has yet to be fully repaired".
The Post continues: “When looking at the larger picture of the crisis, Piper was clear that the primary cause is the restrictions on the freedom of movement of goods and people through the three crossings into the Strip, which have made a viable economy impossible.” When it rains .
As part of his AIPAC performance, Dershowitz effectively promoted Water-Gen to the frontlines of the battle against the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement for Palestinian rights: “I believe that there is no weapon more powerful in the fight against BDS than for Israel to develop technologies that the world cannot live without… You cannot boycott products that you can’t live without.” In sum, it seems it’s not so much about nobly rescuing a hapless, thirsty planet.
It’s about securing Israel’s image and with it its highly profitable spot in the international order – using water from thin air to whitewash a system of institutionalised apartheid and ethnic cleansing.
And that, surely, is something we can all live without.

Women Are The Lifeline To Those Without Access To Water In Kenya.
KILIFI COUNTY, Kenya ― Each morning before the heat rises, Kanze Kahindi sets out from her one-room hut near the village of Changojeni for a six-mile walk to the nearest small river.
Changojeni is one of the driest villages in Kilifi County, in southeast Kenya.
The project is yet another reminder of just how significantly water access can affect the daily lives of women and girls.
Gladys Mapenze, 26 When Mapenze was a girl, there was no such thing as immediate access to clean water in her village, Kibaoni.
“We started selling water, accumulating profits.
“From our home to the school, the children walk two hours,” she said.
“I’d actually take two days.” With water collection taking up so much of her time, Bashora never went to school.
If she could do it all again, Bashora said, she would live somewhere with water nearby so she’d be able to pursue an education.
“I felt as if that water was being poured on my soul,” Bashora told HuffPost.

Dry season has begun to hit areas across Java.
About 15,000 residents of eight villages in the southern area of Wonogiri regency in Central Java have reportedly been suffering from severe drought for the last several weeks.
As a result, villagers have had to collectively pay between Rp 70,000 (US$5.3) and Rp 100,000 for a 6,000-liter tank of water.
“Rain has been extremely rare lately.
They need up to two tanks of water for a week,” Waluyo, 39, a resident of Johunut village in Paranggupito district said on Wednesday.
Wells, ponds and water springs, which were villagers’ source of water, are reportedly going dry.
We don’t have other options,” said 57-year-old Sunarni.
Paranggupito district official Dwi Hartono said almost half of the residents in the district began to order water tanks about a month ago.
Since there is no more rain, they buy tank water to fill up the tubs,” Dwi said.
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Australian activist runs 300km along Nile River for water crisis.
In a press conference on Sunday, Jolie said her global initiative entitled "Run for Water" aims to raise awareness and provide solutions that effectively contribute to solving the global crisis of water scarcity.
The 46-year-old Australian activist launched her initiative at the end of March, the goal of which is to shed light on the sixth United Nations Sustainable Development goals that urge the world to ensure water availability and sanitation services for all.
Jolie plans to run along rivers in Brazil, Australia, China, Egypt and the United Kingdom over the course of six weeks to draw the attention to the initiative’s goal and call on all concerned bodies to cooperate in order to ensure clean water availability and sanitation for everybody.
Egypt is the penultimate station in her long journey which already began on March 22 on the banks of the Nile River in Luxor and Aswan and ended in Cairo.
According to a press statement released by Luxor Governorate, Jolie said she was very happy to be in Luxor; she enjoyed a breathtaking view of the Nile and warm, welcoming reception from the friendly locals.
"Jolie has successfully finished her tour in Egypt and she will fly to England to resume her journey running along the River Thames in London; the capital’s river is 346km long and considered the longest river in England and the second longest river in the United Kingdom," said Mahmoud Ezz el-Din, one of Jolie’s companions.
Jolie said the problem of global water shortage allows an opportunity for innovation and leadership.
"According to recent statistics, there are 650 million people around the world living without water and by 2025 one-third of the world’s population will suffer from this problem," Jolie said.
On World Water Day 2012, Jolie launched "Thirst Foundation" to create a base of people and companies to work together to change consumer habits and attract societies to the sustainable water products.

Emerging crisis: In Toba Tek Singh, clean water a scarcity.
FAISALABAD: In Toba Tek Singh, the city of famous Sikh saint Teko Singh and a dry region within Punjab, fresh water is scarce and contaminated by industrial pollution.
During the past 24 years, however, the canals has dried up and excessive power load-shedding has aggravated the situation.
Even those, who are availing tap water facility, are getting contaminated water.” “The population of Toba Tek Singh comprises more than 2.7 million people.
The major source of drinking water in the district is underground water which is also used for irrigation purposes,” he added, “The water is unfit for human consumption because of being brackish and contaminated.”.
“It is playing havoc with the health and lives of people and also ruining the entire agriculture and wildlife sector of our district.” Rafique pointed out: “I have been raising the matter in the assembly since 2008 but I could not succeed in resolving the chronic issue of drinking water and provision of canal water to the farmers.” Former MNA and district Nazim of Toba Tek Singh Chaudhry Ashfaque told The Express Tribune, “In extremely hot and harsh weather conditions, the people of the district are running from pillar to post to acquire potable drinking water.” He added, “Those, who can afford, buy water from the markets.
He added majority of the population has been infected with waterborne diseases.
He said, “We are unable to drink water and use it for other purposes.” He maintained, “The people have no other option but to stand in a queue at water plants to fill cans that has affected our routine work.” A senior citizen Muhammad Ameen said over 75% people of Toba Tek Singh are forced to drink contaminated water.
He admitted that under the present setup, the municipal committees cannot meet the water demand of the district due to lack of resources.
Health risk Senior medical officer Dr Muhammad Anwar said waterborne diseases are increasing at an alarming rate in Toba Tek Singh.

In order to protest against water scarcity and other civic problems prevailing in Pt Motilal Nehru Ward, a large number of residents of the ward on Tuesday conducted a cycle rally from Mansoori Baratghar to the Jabalpur Municipal Corporation (JMC) headquarters.
After reaching JMC, they staged massive protest and submitted a memorandum to Deputy Commissioner, Rakesh Ayachi.
In the memorandum they said many area of the ward are facing water scarcity but the JMC authorities are paying no heed to resolve the problem.
They alleged that the water scarcity prevailed only due to negligence of concerned authorities.
People said the JMC is not connecting 6 inch pipe line from Hamid Chowk to Jamia square, a pipe line from Ansar Nagar Bahorabagh to Char Khamba, Lema Garden to Prince Medical etc.
Apart from that the Municipal Corporation is also not completing proposed development works like construction of roads and drains in the ward.
Corporator, Tahir Ali said the health department of JMC is paying utter negligence to ensure proper cleanliness arrangements in the ward.
The department is not cleaning drains and nullahs in the ward.
The Corporator and ward residents have demanded the JMC administration to fulfill aforementioned demands within seven days or else they would staged massive protest at JMC headquarters.
Those present were Leader of Opposition in JMC, Rajesh Sonkar, Gulam Hussain, Abhishekh Yadav, Ayub Ansari, Akram Ansari and others.