But for the rest of the year, all the villagers depended on the well for their drinking water. Very often, water was drawn round the clock to supply village needs and villagers waited in long queues to get their vessels filled. Villages around Dodopani share its physical characteristics. Their average size ranges from 60 to 300 households. None of them possesses potable groundwater at an accessible depth.
Water reigns as the limiting constraint for all economic activities.
Four years ago the government provided Dodopani with a storage tank filled by piped water from a tubewell located six km away. Water from the tank is available to all villagers free of cost. Villagers state that water is now available in more than sufficient quantities for some days in the month. In fact, water overflowing from the tank creates a big puddle for 8 to 10 days in the month. For another 5 to 6 days, water supply is normal, just filling the tank.