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	Introduction   Kenya: Maasai walk   Ethiopia: drought walk   Nairobi: slum walk   El Paso: drought   Calcutta: slum walk   Bangladesh: poisoned water		Poisoned drinking water, Bangladesh The Hawlader family live in a rural area outside Dhaka in Bangladesh. Talking to the BBC World Service they explained how their tainted drinking water has had a debilitating effect on everyone in the family. Sisters Rita and Nipa Hawlader are being treated in the Dhaka Community Hospital. They have arsenic poisoning. Most girls of Rita and Nipa’s age in Bangladesh are thinking of marriage or going to college, but for these two girls life has come to a slow and painful halt. The arsenic is in their water. It comes from deep wells which tap ground water from the Himalayas. Painful spots The first signs of arsenic poisoning appear on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet. These painful spots make it difficult to walk, work and have a normal life. Continuing to drink contaminated water will break down the body's immune system leaving the body vulnerable to a variety of diseases - including cancer. Cruel condition Rita and Nipa's whole family has arsenic poisoning; not one of them has escaped this cruel condition. Mr Hawlader drives a bus, his son Tipu is a mechanic. Mrs Hawlader and her daughters get up very early in the morning for their first trip to the river about half a kilometre away. They cannot get their water from nearby wells because this water might contain arsenic. Tired and lethargic Arsenic poisoning does not only give you painful spots on your feet and hands, you also become tired and lethargic. Related audio: The symptoms of arsenic poisoning Source: Water Walks, programme 1, Bangladesh, (April 2003) Having to carry large amounts of water and walk long distances every day is painful and demoralising work. Once they are home the water has to be filtered through a muslin strip into a cooking pot. That pot is placed on a fire to sterilise the water and make it drinkable. The wood for the fire has been collected by Mrs Hawlader and her daughters. It is frustrating to waste time on this task. This is time that could be spent going to school, making pots for sale or on one of the hundreds of other jobs around the house which have to be done. Tipu’s illness is not as pronounced as his sisters; because he has been drinking clean water he seems to be improving. He still gets extremely tired and finds doing a full days work in the garage very hard. His wage has been halved because of his condition and he is in constant fear of losing his job. Mrs Hawlader is concerned that her daughters will not be able to get a husband. Arranged marriages are still the tradition in these rural areas. Not having a husband can bring great shame to the family. The eldest brother cannot marry until his sisters have, so this brings added stress to all of them. Wives thrown out Mrs Hawlader says she knows many wives who have been thrown out by husbands not wanting an infected woman in their house. But there is hope for Rita, Nipa and the rest of the family. Because they are taking care with the water they drink and taking sensible precautions, like boiling and filtering and not using the water from the wells, their outlook is good. Rita and Nipa should make a full recovery. For the millions of people in Bangladesh who face the possibility of getting arsenic poisoning, the outlook is not so good. These people are unlikely to have the same access to medical care, information or more important clean water. And back at the Dhaka Community Hospital Prof. Quazi Quamruzzaman, the chairman of the DCH Trustee Board of this pioneering hospital is angry. "The poor people who are using this water don’t know what they are drinking, but their life depends on it. They are the ones who are going to suffer from the toxicity or pathogens but do they have a say in the matter? No". Related story: Bangladesh arsenic case begins The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites Listen to the radio series: Water Walks parts 1 and 2 BBC World Service Online visited The Hawlader family in February 2003

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