Summer is hard. And in dry regions where the sun is at its fiercest, even stepping out of the house becomes a daily struggle. If it’s this difficult for us — with water bottles, fans, and shelter — imagine what it must be like for stray animals and birds, left to fend for themselves, desperate for just a little food or water to get through the day.

According to People for Animals (PfA), in March 2024 alone, over 88.2 per cent of birds, and 5.9 percent of reptiles and mammals rescued were found to be dehydrated. If these numbers are alarming in a relatively greener city like Bengaluru, the situation in Rajasthan — with its harsher, drier climate — is even more dire.

A group of seven friends from the village of Bawarla near Jodhpur decided they wouldn’t just stand by and watch. What began as a simple effort to place bowls of water and grain for animals has transformed into ‘Jeev Jantu Premee Bandhu Sanstha’ (Friends Who Love Living Beings), a grassroots movement with over 690 active members across 35 villages, all united by one mission: to ensure no living being dies of thirst or hunger during Rajasthan’s punishing summers.

Deaths due to dehydration

In regions like Rajasthan, where temperatures often soar above 45°C, dehydration can prove fatal for animals. This became painfully clear during the pandemic summer of 2021. The pandemic had gripped the country, but another silent tragedy was unfolding in the arid corners of Jodhpur, Rajasthan: animals and birds were collapsing from heat and thirst.

“When I heard that even animals like camels, which can withstand drought, were dying due to lack of water, I knew this can’t continue for long,” shares Dinesh Bishnoi, an officer at AIIMS Jodhpur, one of the founding members of the initiative.

“Rajasthan is a dry place, in many ways a man-made desert. There are barely any trees apart from Khejri and Kair. Animals have very limited access to food, shade, and water,” shares Prakash Bishnoi, a nurse superintendent with the railways and a core member of the Jeev Jantu Premee Bandhu Sanstha.

Moved by the........

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