Water is not equally available to all citizens in Chennai. Certain areas like Anna Nagar get copious water while areas like Saidapet receive very little water. Municipal supply meets only about half the needs of the people of the city, on an average. Areas that are close to the storage points get more water whereas colonies further away receive less water. The burden of shortfalls in water supply falls mostly on the poor.

The middle class, when faced with water shortages, are able to cope through a variety of private means such as digging bore wells, buying water from tankers, and using bottled water for drinking. The wealthy have safe drinking water, whereas the poor are again left out. In reality, universal access to ‘sufficient and safe’ water, in Chennai, is still a dream.