.jpg)
Almost 500 families have been affected by a shortage of drinking water across several villages in the Vavuniya District.
Several families in Omanthai, Oonjalkatti, Maruthodai, Karkulam and Sinnadampan have been affected by the drought. In total, 1471 people from 492 families have had restricted access to essential drinking water.
.jpg)
Vavuniya South Tamil divisional council took responsibility for supplying water through tanks, installing thirteen around the villages. However the water provided is only just meeting the drinking water needs of the villagers, with little spare for hygiene.
Vavuniya has been experiencing severe drought since June this year, even surpassing the monsoon month of October, when rain is typically expected. Wells in the area have dried up leaving limited resources for the villagers to gain access to water. Livestock are also suffering from the drought due to the depletion of pondwater in the area.
Villagers said while the local council had been trying to help, they said the government was failing to mitigate the causes of the drought.
