Seasonal dynamics of multidimensional water poverty in a semi-arid region of India
- 1International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), India
- 2Corresponding author. Regenerative Landscape Theme, Global Research Program – Resilient Farming Systems, International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Patancheru, 502324, Telangana, India.
Abstract
Seasonal variation in household water deprivation remains poorly understood, particularly in drought-prone semi-arid regions. This study examines the seasonal dynamics of multidimensional water poverty in the Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh, using primary datafrom a survey of 1618 households across 37 villages inJhansi district, of which 1589 households (summer) and 1597 (normal) had complete water-related information. A Multidimensional Water Poverty Index (MWPI) was constructed usingthe Alkire–Foster method, with a 30% poverty cut-off and four dimensions: access, stress, quality and capacity. To place household water poverty in its hydro-climatic context, drought conditions were assessed using the 12-month Standardised Precipitation Index (SPI-12) derived from India Meteorological Department gridded rainfall for 1993–2023, which showed a significant long-term decline and a cluster of drought years during 2017–2022. The share of multidimensionally water-poor households increasedfrom 48.4% in the normal season to 67.7% in summer, and the MWPI rose from 0.233 to 0.300. Water stress, reflected in short supply hours and long collection times, was the largest contributor to water poverty and accounted for about 90% of its seasonal change, whereas deprivation in household piped connections and sanitation changed little between seasons. Households relying on intermittent piped supply outside the dwelling were among the most deprived, and seven villages remainedhighly water-poor in both seasons. These results were robust to alternative poverty cut-offs and weighting schemes. The findings highlight the need for season-specific interventions that improve the reliability of water supply, alongside structural investment in household connections and sanitation, in drought-prone semi-arid regions.
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BibTeX
@article{padhan2026seasonal,
title = {{Seasonal dynamics of multidimensional water poverty in a semi-arid region of India}},
author = {Niranjan Padhan and Anantha KH and Venkata Radha Akuraju and Kaushal K. Garg and Aiendrila Dey and Ashok Shukla and Debi Prasad Sahoo and Sourav Roy and Nagarjuna N. Reddy and Israr Majeed and S. Madheswaran and Ramesh Singh},
journal = {Environmental and Sustainability Indicators},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1016/j.indic.2026.101575},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indic.2026.101575},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Seasonal dynamics of multidimensional water poverty in a semi-arid region of India
AU - Niranjan Padhan
AU - Anantha KH
AU - Venkata Radha Akuraju
AU - Kaushal K. Garg
AU - Aiendrila Dey
AU - Ashok Shukla
AU - Debi Prasad Sahoo
AU - Sourav Roy
AU - Nagarjuna N. Reddy
AU - Israr Majeed
AU - S. Madheswaran
AU - Ramesh Singh
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/30
JO - Environmental and Sustainability Indicators
DO - 10.1016/j.indic.2026.101575
UR - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indic.2026.101575
AB - Seasonal variation in household water deprivation remains poorly understood, particularly in drought-prone semi-arid regions. This study examines the seasonal dynamics of multidimensional water poverty in the Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh, using primary datafrom a survey of 1618 households across 37 villages inJhansi district, of which 1589 households (summer) and 1597 (normal) had complete water-related information. A Multidimensional Water Poverty Index (MWPI) was constructed usingthe Alkire–Foster method, with a 30% poverty cut-off and four dimensions: access, stress, quality and capacity. To place household water poverty in its hydro-climatic context, drought conditions were assessed using the 12-month Standardised Precipitation Index (SPI-12) derived from India Meteorological Department gridded rainfall for 1993–2023, which showed a significant long-term decline and a cluster of drought years during 2017–2022. The share of multidimensionally water-poor households increasedfrom 48.4% in the normal season to 67.7% in summer, and the MWPI rose from 0.233 to 0.300. Water stress, reflected in short supply hours and long collection times, was the largest contributor to water poverty and accounted for about 90% of its seasonal change, whereas deprivation in household piped connections and sanitation changed little between seasons. Households relying on intermittent piped supply outside the dwelling were among the most deprived, and seven villages remainedhighly water-poor in both seasons. These results were robust to alternative poverty cut-offs and weighting schemes. The findings highlight the need for season-specific interventions that improve the reliability of water supply, alongside structural investment in household connections and sanitation, in drought-prone semi-arid regions.
SN - 2665-9727
ER -