Shaheli lives with her husband, children, and a granddaughter in West Bengal, India. For most of her life, the only source of water for her village was an outdated well with a pump that was often broken. The well was a ten-minute walk from her house, and because it was the only water source for the 385 families in her village, there was always a line of people at the water point. Collecting water meant Shaheli lost time every day.

“I used to have to get up very early in the morning, usually before everyone woke up, to get water for cooking,” she says. “Most of my time was spent fetching water.”

Two years ago, Water For People and a local partner began to build a piped water system that would provide water directly to every household in Shaheli’s community.

“Now I get water just outside my house!” Shaheli says, breaking into a smile.

Shaheli’s family pays a monthly tariff that helps maintain the community water system. Her family has also invested in improvements to their household water and sanitation infrastructure to provide running water to their toilet and bathroom.

With this new water system, life has become much easier for Shaheli and the other families in the district, freeing up their time every single day.