For twenty years the borewell near the dhobhi ghat had supplied water to Panickanadarkudieruppu. It was near the red sand desert that bordered the village. The water was very tasty. Many villagers said that it was as good as the drinking water in Mumbai.

There were taps at regular intervals on all the roads and even in the small by lanes. 10% of the villagers had house connections. For a house connection you paid a 1000/- rupees deposit and 30/- rupees every month for the water.

One day the water turned salty. Village elders said that they were expecting this. The borewell had been dug to a depth of more than 200 feet. Trees near it had begun to dry and die and thus the elders had suspected that the water table was drying up.

Another small borewell was dug inside the village. A hand pump was installed there. The water was good but not as tasty as the earlier source. The Panchayat President Rajarathinam wanted to dig a deeper well here and build a tank.

Village elder Chellathurai Nadar objected. ‘You saw what happened at the dhobhi ghat. All the trees there dried up. This too will happen here. That well was at the village border. This is in the center of the village. Here too all the trees will dry up’.

So a small pump and a small Syntex tank was installed here. This was enough for a few houses but not enough for the entire village. The Panchayat had to look for water elsewhere.

The next hamlet Kila Naulumavadi was within the same Panchayat. There too the borewell water had turned salty.

A new spot was selected near the river. The water was found to be good. A new borewell was dug. Water from this well was pumped to both Panickanadarkudieruppu and Kilanalumavadi. It was enough for both villages.

Water usually comes for three hours in the morning and three hours in the evening. When there is a marriage in the village, they inform the man who operates the pump. Then water is supplied for 24 hours.

Last Wednesday i.e 31st May, 2006 there were two marriages. One in Panickanadarkudieruppu and the other in Kila Nalumavadi. So both villages needed water. After starting the water pump the operator fills the Kila Nalumavadi tank. Once that is full he opens a valve in the delivery pipe and water flows to Panickanadarkudieruppu.

On that particular day the villagers in Kila Nalumavadi village refused to allow the operator to open that particular valve. So there was no water in Panickanadarkudieruppu. The Panchayat Vice-President Murugesapandian said ‘ When two villages within the same Panchayat cannot share water peacefully how can you expect the Cauvery to flow into Tamil Nadu’.

In the middle of the night the villagers went and opened the valve themselves. Both marriages had enough water for all their guests.

Now the Panchayat is locating two new sources of water for the two villages. Each already has it’s own tank. Once this is done then there will be no quarrel over drinking water.

For two years there has been water in the river. Thus all wells in the village have been full. When a fight over water could start in these times of plenty villagers shudder to think what would happen if there was water scarcity.

Elders say that this village has never experienced drinking water scarcity. The only time there has been no water is when the water pump motor was under repair or when the Electricity played truant.