Water Wives: A Harsh Consequence of Water Sca...

Water Wives: A Harsh Consequence of Water Scarcity for Women in Rajasthan

Author Name : Ramesh Chander Koli, R. C. Koli

ABSTRACT A Report from the IPCC (United Nations) has revealed that women are more susceptible and vulnerable to the adversities of the environment. In one of such instances in India, the acute water scarcity in the State of Rajasthan has further aggravated the problem for women. Due to the extreme shortage of water, men marry multiple times because a greater number of women in the house will imply that more drinking water could be fetched. Such wives are known as „Water Wives‟. This practice first originated in of Rajasthan, where one needs 12 hours to fetch water, and because presently over 41000 villages in Rajasthan have no access to water, this practice became more pervasive with time. The present study aims to explore the problem of water scarcity in context with the women in the region and the process of „dehumanization‟ and „co modification‟ that they are subjected to and the circumstances that have led to the current state of affairs.