At 6 a.m. each day, Revathy (name changed) and her neighbours at Butchammal Street in New Washermenpet gather at the hand pumps. The first water that flows is murky and has a foul smell. For at least the next 90 minutes, they need to pump and discard buckets of water before clear and odourless water flows.

Such scenes are almost common in many parts of Tondiarpet, a prominent zone in Dr. Radhakrishnan Nagar (R.K.Nagar) constituency in north Chennai. For residents like Revathy, this is a routine they have been following for several years as households struggle to access clean and safe drinking water. The reason : old sewer lines and water pipelines.