Water, water, everywhere, and not a drop to drink

Sir,

Residents, young and old of the villages comprising the Saiyan block of the historic Indian city of Agra do not really have a reason to smile; not just because their teeth perennially bear ugly stains but more so because children and adults alike have been ‘cursed’ to lead a life of crippling disability. Yes, as they themselves put it proverbially, that they were destined to be children of the lesser god.

This time, the adjacent villages of Gandeshpura, Ladhukheda and Lachipura were in news for rather bad reasons. A majority of the inhabitants in these villages were affl icted by varying grades of skeletal problems ranging from mild disability to major impairment and handicaps. Children bore the maximum brunt of all with a lot many born with deformed limbs that progressed further into their crippling forms in toddlerhood and later age groups. Read more. . .