THIRST QUENCHER OF AGRA

Come summer. The dedicated volunteers of a unique water service come rushing in with their water trolleys, buckets and mugs wherever there is a crowd. Since 1987 they have been doing it without fail, serving water to the poor during the scorching summer months when the temperature goes up to 48 degrees.

The Sri Nathji Nishulk Jal Sewa (Sri Nathji Free Water Service) of Agra is a unique movement that does not fit in the stereotyped image of a non-governmental organisation (NGO). It is a voluntary campaign headed by Sri Nathji (the lord himself) as the president and chief functionary of an elaborate network.

The people of Agra have enthusiastically supported the water network comprising of more than 75 stationary and mobile kiosks at most road crossings. Thanks to this unique experiment Agra is one city in northern India where one does not find water being sold at road junctions or bus stops because they are bound to have a Sri Nathji kiosk supplying free ice cooled water. Most kiosks have two elderly people, generally a man and a woman, always eager to provide the thirsty a mug of scented water.

Professional social workers and NGO functionaries used to national and international grants often wonder how this operation runs so smoothly and meticulously without any government grants. Explains Bankey Lal Maheshwari, the nucleus of the network: "Sri Nathji takes care of all hurdles and barriers. We never run short of finances because people on their own keep contributing to the coffers. The service runs without hiccups because we pay 100-odd people Rs. 60 to 75 daily. "Most are retired, elderly men and women. Our movement is not registered, we have no constitution."

The Jal Sewa which now has several clones in many other cities started in the summer of 1987 following a major train accident at Agra's Raja Ki Mandi station. Water had to be provided to hundreds of victims of the accident. People from the nearby areas brought buckets and mugs. That became the group's makeshift infrastructure. The volunteers decided to open a water kiosk at the station. Later, the dedicated band of volunteers started the Sri Nathji water service, which has come to be highly respected in the city. Without its ubiquitous water kiosks, no public function seems complete, be it a Hindu religious meet or a literacy day rally. Even the local administration is dependent on the service, which has the capacity to provide potable water to thousands at a short notice.

It has won the hearts of people who travel through Agra. An interesting facet is the stress on quality of water and the ice used, says Dr Rajan Kishore pointing out how some years ago, when 17 people died after drinking poor quality water here, it was the group's water kiosks that brought relief to the locals. Shravan, a professional NGO consultant, says the water service is an unusual body representing the ideals of volunteerism in contrast with the many rackets that flourish all over India, squandering government resources.

M.C. Gupta, a leading physician who organizes an annual art competition for children, said he was amazed at the arrangement for drinking water made for some 8,000 children last year after just two hours of notice.

Asked about the annual budget, Maheshwari said the service spent one million rupees during just four months of summer. Expenses are also incurred on a chain of night shelters for the commoners that come up during winter. Money keeps flowing in trickles, but donors do not wish to be acclaimed or even noticed, adds Vinay Paliwal, a key Jal Sewa aide.

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