‘We Have No Choice’: Nashik Women Risk Lives Climbing Into Dry Wells for Water, Officials Deny Viral Video

Nashik, 22nd April 2025: In a stark reminder of rural Maharashtra’s ongoing water woes, women from Borichibari village in Peth taluka are reportedly scaling down a deep, dried-up well with the help of a jute rope to fetch limited and contaminated water. Located just 65 kilometers from Nashik city, Borichibari has been grappling with a worsening water crisis as its main water source has run dry.

A video circulating on social media has intensified scrutiny, showing a woman descending nearly 30 feet into a stone well to collect what little water remains. However, the local administration has dismissed the footage as misleading.

“The heat this year is more severe than usual. Since early April, we’ve had no proper water supply. We requested help from the gram panchayat, but nothing came of it. That’s why we have to climb down the well to gather even a bucket of water,” said Ranjana Gavit, a local resident, echoing concerns shared by others including Shanta Nikole.

Despite these first-hand accounts, group gram panchayat sarpanch Mohan Kamdi rejected the claims, suggesting the viral video was part of a political smear campaign. “There is no truth to the suggestion that women are being forced to enter wells. We are already pumping water from another well into the village system. The situation is under control,” he said.

Borichibari, home to 554 people and situated near the Maharashtra-Gujarat border, falls under the jurisdiction of a group gram panchayat. On Monday, a team comprising the Peth tehsildar and the block development officer visited the village for a ground assessment.

Resident Deputy District Collector Rajendra Wagh confirmed that the primary well had dried up and required deepening. “A tanker has now been deployed to refill the well. Women can draw water using buckets. While residents did request household water supply, the panchayat is currently reviewing that demand. The well shown in the viral video, however, is not in use,” he clarified.

Wagh added that the panchayat would soon send a proposal to deepen the main well further. Until then, water will continue to be provided through tankers to ease the immediate crisis.