Perseverance in the Face of Water Scarcity in Hot Summer Seasons: A Case Study of Slum Communities in Indore, India

According to a report by the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog, Government of India (Composite water management index: a tool for water management. https://​niti.​gov.​in/​sites/​default/​files/​2019-08/​CWMI-2.​0-latest.​pdf, 2019), nearly 600 million people in India face extreme water stress. The problem is exacerbated in the hot summer months, when slum dwellers in particular face formidable challenges in accessing and storing water for meeting their basic needs, with women typically bearing the brunt of these burdens. The purpose of this study was to assess the challenges, short-term measures, and coping mechanisms in regard to water access, and to suggest ways of improving water accessibility during the summer seasons for the slum population living in the city of Indore, India. Qualitative methods such as field observation and interviews and/or focus group meetings with female slum residents, municipal authorities, and frontline health workers were utilized in achieving these objectives. The findings revealed that the slum population has a high dependency on private water sources, as well as on other informal and local mechanisms for accessing and storing water during the summer. The study also highlighted different ways in which the slum communities negotiate with municipal authorities and private players for gaining accessibility to water. In the light of increasing water scarcity, as evident in India and other low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), the findings herein should be of use to civil society organizations, municipal authorities, academics, and other stakeholders as they work to develop equitable water provisions for the slum communities.