A Day without Water

This is the story 'A Day without Water' from your book, Santoor (Chapter 6). Your teacher reads it aloud. Here it is, told in short.

One hot summer morning, Suma went to brush her teeth, but when she turned on the tap, no water came out. She was surprised. Her mother told her there was no water in the tank; the whole area had no water that day.

Suma soon found out how hard life is without water. She could not brush her teeth, wash her face or take a bath. There was no water to cook or to wash the dishes. At school the toilets were closed, there was very little drinking water, and the children were told to bring water bottles from home. In her neighbourhood, some people hurried to the shop to buy bottles of water, and others waited for a water tanker that came from another place. Everyone looked worried.

In the evening the water came back. Suma was very happy, and she promised herself that she would never waste water again. Her school held a Water Conservation Week, with poster-making, tree planting and a water-saving competition. Suma and her friends made posters that said 'Save Every Drop' and 'No Water, No Life'.

After this, Suma understood how important water tanks and water-saving habits are. She asked her parents to set up a rainwater harvesting system at home, a way of collecting and saving rainwater, and they happily agreed.