This Teenager Single-Handedly Dug a 55-ft-deep Well in His Backyard. For a Heartwarming Reason!

This Karnataka teenager dug a well in his backyard so his mother would not have to walk to fetch water after work every day.

By Nishi Malhotra

April 25, 2016

A 17-year-old boy named Pavan Kumar, from Settisara village in the Malnad region of Karnataka, could not bear to see his mother make repeated trips to a distant well every evening after work to fetch water for the family.

His mother, Nethravathi, works at a printing unit in Sagar and his father is a cook. The family is poor and does not have a well in its backyard, unlike many other households in the area.

So, much like Dashrath Manjhi who carved out a 360 foot road in Bihar by himself in memory of his wife, Pavan Kumar too decided to ease his mother’s suffering by digging a well for her next to the house.

He consulted a local hydrology expert and, since the family could not afford labourers, spent 45 days digging the well single-handedly.

Pic for representation purposes only.

Pavan started digging on February 26 this year, took a break for 10 days in March to appear for his PU exam, and finished the job on April 20. The well is 55 ft deep.

“It was really hard to dig the rocky ground under the scorching sun. Finally, at the depth of 53 ft, when water oozed out, I was filled with a sense of fulfilment. After digging two more feet, I completed the work. I am happy that my mother now has respite from having to rush to the public well after coming home from work,” Pavan said to The Hindu.

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