In India, one in four rural households spends more than half an hour walking to collect water. The situation isn’t any brighter in urban areas, where 20 percent of households spend the same amount of time to reach water sources.
Households in rural Odisha take the longest average walking time to reach a water source – more than an hour. In addition, they spend time waiting their turn. Once filled, water jugs can weigh as much as 20 kg.