Amid extreme heat, more than a hundred men and women, carrying dozens of plastic containers, white-coloured curd buckets, paint canisters, and even large blue barrels have gathered on the footpath. The sun is shining bright, and heat is rising dry from the tarmac. They are agitated. They are waiting for water.

This is in the heart of Delhi’s Diplomatic Enclave. Right in front of the British School, the residents of Vivekanand Colony slum cluster come out on the main road every morning, put their buckets in a line and then wait for the water tanker sent by New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC)

As the temperature rises to dizzying heights this summer, access to water has especially become a luxury.

“Heart attack jaisa lagne lag jata hai, jaise hi tanki aati hai (It feels like I am having a heart attack when the water tanker arrives),” says 20-year-old Anjana, a resident of Vivekanand Colony, as reported by IndianExpress.

A little after 1pm, the water tanker finally arrives and there is a sudden commotion. A few boys climb atop the tanker, which holds 10,000 litres of water, carrying pipes. People start fighting each other, pushing containers closer to the tanker, and jostling to climb on the tanker top. “The tanker never comes on time… These days it is so hot that one tank a day is just not enough for all of us. The tanker should come at least twice a day,” says Anjana. She has her final-year examination the next day, but this is a priority. “If there is no water, I won’t be able to even go to my college,” says the Maitreyi College student.

The driver of the tanker said that NDMC sends out five water tankers twice a day to cater to the needs of the entire area. “On this very spot (at the entrance of the slum cluster), we stop only once, around 1 pm,” he adds.

To read detailed report https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/in-heart-of-new-delhi-a-long-wait-for-tankers-and-daily-fights-all-for-a-bucket-of-water-9362669/lite/