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“Paani
le lo! Paani [Water for sale! Water]!” 

Don’t go rushing to bring out your
storage vessels just yet. This water tanker is a tad small. Made using a
plastic bottle, an old rubber chappal, a short length of a plastic pipe and
wooden sticks, this ‘tanker’ can carry maybe a glass of water.   

Balvir Singh, Bhawani Singh, Kailash
Kanwar and Moti Singh – all children of Sanwata, ages 5 to 13 – made this toy
after watching how the arrival of a water tanker twice a week is met with joy
by their parents and others in their village in this eastern corner of
Rajasthan.

Dry earth stretches for miles around
here, and there is no ground water, only a few large ponds scattered sparsely
in the orans (sacred groves) around. 

The children sometimes replace the water
tank with a carrier – a plastic jar cut in half. When this reporter enquired on
the process, they told us that collecting the various parts does take time as
they have to forage for scrap.

Once the sturdy frame is ready, they
steer the toy with its wobbly wheels using a length of metal wire, moving
around from the shade of the ker tree
(Capparis decidua) to their homes,
all within shouting distance of each other.

The water tanker

پانی کا ٹینکر اور بچوں کا کھلونا

పిల్లల ఆటపాటల్లో భాగమైన నీటి టాంకర్

குடிநீர் வாகனங்கள்

ਪਾਣੀ ਵਾਲਾ ਟੈਂਕਰ

ପାଣିବୁହା ଟାଙ୍କି

पाण्याचा टँकर

വാട്ടർ ടാങ്കർ

ನೀರಿನ ಟ್ಯಾಂಕರ್

પાણીનું ટેન્કર

घरघुंदिया मं असल जिनगी

पानी के टैंकर

পানি টাংকি

পানীৰ টেংকাৰখন

पानी का टैंकर और बच्चों का खिलौना

Jaisalmer

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The water tanker

Play imitates real life here in Sanwata village of Jaisalmer district

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