We are all aware of the heat wave that has taken over Delhi, and we are all struggling to stay hydrated in the scorching heat. Imagine the plight of all the poor people out there who cannot afford to drink cold refrigerated water. Alagarathnam Natarajan is a 69-year-old man who has taken it up to himself to quench the city’s thirst.
What Is It?
Alagarathnam Natarajan from South Delhi is a 69-year-old cancer survivor who is known for successfully providing free water to the poor and thirsty all across South Delhi.
Every morning he takes off his van and refills 70 matkas that he has placed all across the city. It all started when he decided to place a water cooler in front of his house to relieve the people of their thirst. At that time he faced a lot of opposition from his family as well as his neighbours who thought that the water cooler would attract thieves and hooligans.
Despite all the backlash, he went ahead with his idea but wanted to do more. Since installing more water coolers proved to be an expensive task, he found an easier alternative to it. He places earthen pots across the city so that people can easily have access to cool drinking water. Today after five years he has matkas placed in groups of three across 50 different locations in the city.
What’s More?
Not less than a super hero, the Matkaman starts his days at 4 am in the morning when he heads to a nearby school that has given him permission to draw the underground water. He then drives around in his van to fill the pots. Each water stand has a board with his contact number which is to be used in case the water finishes.
He is extremely particular about the quality of water he serves and keeps a check on the cleanliness of the matkas. Alagarathnam Natarajan was born in Bangalore and used to live as a souvenir seller in London. But 10 years ago when he was diagnosed with Cancer he came back to India. And a good thing he did, we got our own superhero.