Janakpur: The people of the Dom community of Hariharpur-3, Dhanusa district, are prevented from using water sources as they are considered lower caste. Surprisingly, they are not discriminated against by non-Dalits but other Dalit communities.

The Chamar and Mushahar communities consider Doms to be lower caste and have prevented them from accessing water sources in the village. This has made the life of the Dom community very difficult.

There are two wells here, but Doms are beaten up if they even touch them, says Surendra Malik, a member of the only remaining Dom household in the village. Two years ago, there were five Dom households in the village. Members of two households died due to lack of water and two households were displaced. The sole household left is also planning to migrate soon.

Birendra Malik recalls how his father died due to lack of water. "It is unfortunate that villagers still do not have pity on us," he says.

Dhaneshwari Malik, the eldest member of the family, said she went to Janakpur and complained to officials about how they were being deprived of water from the public wells. "Later, officials came to the village and instructed people from other communities to give us access to wells," she recalled. Since then, the villagers have started giving Dhaneshwari two buckets of water every day, for cooking, cleaning, bathing, and drinking.

Bhola Sada, a member of the Mushahar community, claims that they cannot allow the Dom community to touch the wells because it contaminates the place and angers the gods.

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