Earthen pots cool in peak summers

Our Correspondent

Advertisement

Mandi Ahmedgarh, May 27

With the mercury rising day by day, earthen pots are becoming very popular these days. Besides being a “poor man’s refrigerator”, the pitcher is emerging as a supplementary water cooler for proud owners of refrigerators as well.

Potters at the western end of the town and surrounding localities are super busy these days. Mule carts ferrying colourful pots can be seen leaving early morning for distant urban localities.

People in the region, who cannot afford a refrigerator, opt for an earthen pot with the onset of summers. Even those who have a refrigerator prefer to drink water stored in earthen pots as they feel it is healthier than that chilled in the refrigerator.

Dr Ravinder Sharma Happy, an ayurvedic practitioner, said: “Cooling through evaporation is more hygienic than that done in reused bottles kept in refrigerators. Besides being at optimum and pleasant temperature, the water stored in earthen pots contains high content of desired micronutrients.”

The sale of earthen pots goes up in summers in this part of Malwa region, where temperature normally soars at 45° C.

The dry and hot season is known as the most favourable season for cooling water in pitchers. “As water oozing out of pores of these pots evaporates speedily during hot and dry weather, the process being endothermic causes cooling of water contained in pot more speedily,” Gurmit Singh, a lecturer in physics, explained.

Local made earthen pots are much in demand which each pot priced between Rs 60 and Rs 100.

Though normally residents visit localities of potters for buying pots of their choice, some families have started adding the commodity in the list of grocery too.

Pawan Garg, a grocer, said some regular customers want the supply of quality earthen pots along with other ration items.

The phenomenon explained