India is famed for its stepwells – multi-story structures built to provide access to groundwater, with steps and platforms descending to the water level. Thousands were built across the country near natural aquifers – underground porous rock saturated with water – mostly between the 11th and 18th centuries. About 100 are in the southern Indian state of Telangana, with nearly half of these in the state’s capital, Hyderabad. “If the water from all the stepwells became potable, it would then encourage people to preserve these systems,” she says. More than 600 million Indians already face high-to-extreme water stress, and the country’s water demand is projected to double by 2030.

Source: The Guardian March 01, 2026 07:39 UTC