If there is a will, there is a way - to reserve rainwater.
Two brothers in Ranchi are investing their year-long savings for a pilgrimage to revamp a shallow and shrinking pond in their neighbourhood at a time when most others would look up to the government for both money and manpower for such a job.
Subhas Kumar (40) and Rabindra Kumar (35) are residents of New Colony in Jagannathpur, 8km from the district headquarters. Subhas is a technical expert hired on contract by Jharkhand State Watershed Mission, a unit of state rural development department for watershed management, while Rabindra works with the CoBRA, a special unit of central paramilitary forces, and is posted in Maoist-hit Bastar in Chhattishgarh.
The big-hearted brothers, sons of a retired clerk of Heavy Engineering Corporation, are spending around Rs 50,000, which they had scrimped and saved for Vaishno Devi darshan, to desilt a 3,600sqft pond.
"The talab in our locality was five feet deep. Now, it has lost almost a feet's depth because of silt. We need to desilt the pond and store rainwater for Chhath celebrations later in the year. People are also finding it difficult to bathe because the talab has almost dried up," said Subhas, who has not just hired 40 labourers to clean the pond of green growth first, but is also pitching in along with his family.
An earthmover has also been hired. Work started on Sunday and is expected to continue till Thursday, he said.
On how the idea struck them, Subhas said acute water crisis this year compelled them to think out of the box. "We can visit Vaishno Devi later, but we can't let my people here go thirsty. Our parents, Shivani Devi and S.N. Sharma, encouraged us to help people," said the elder brother, an alumnus of Yogada Satsang Vidyalaya.
Family members are pitching in as best as they can. Soni Devi, better half of Subhas prepares food for the labourers, while Rabindra's wife Neha manages the extra household chores.
For children in the family, the pond renovation is fun. "I get up early in the morning and help lift mud. We get to play in the mud too," said Ashish, son of Subhas and a Class VI student of Kairali School. Daughter Kritika, a third grader in the same school, echoed her brother and said, "The pond has become our favourite playground."
Rabindra's daughter Milli, a kindergarten student of Kairali School, is waiting for water in the pond. "When the pond is full again, I will float paper boats," she said with a coy smile.
For neighbours, the brothers are summer messiahs. "They are doing a good job. They are motivating others to come forward and help," said Abhisekh Pathak, a software engineer and local resident.
Abhay Yadav, a CRPF constable, couldn't agree more. "The brothers have inspired me. There are some wells in our area. I plan to clean them on my own," Yadav said.
Kameshwar Kumar, a caterer by profession, said he was helping the brothers by working as a labourer on hire. "I am poor and this is my way of participating in a good cause," he added.
