A city in India almost ran dry. What will prevent a repeat?

On a sultry September afternoon Eswari meanders restlessly around her neighborhood. Dressed in a floral printed nightgown and her hair tied in a messy bun, she halts occasionally to exchange a few words with passersby. At one moment, she joins a group of women who look at the gray clouds gathering overhead and release a collective sigh. There is only one topic of discussion here: water.

Eswari works as a security guard at an IT firm, but today she took leave. She wanted to ensure she would be available to fill the two large water drums that her family uses for everything except drinking and cooking, on the odd chance water came through the pumps outside their building. It did not. 

“We are not informed which day or