The story of the well-drilling village in Yen Thanh.

Returning from a well-drilling trip in Quy Chau district, Nguyen Van Dung (38 years old) – a well-drilling veteran with nearly 20 years of experience in Nhan Tien village – said: “Life was difficult because there was little arable land, and planting acacia trees only started about ten years ago. My wife, I, and our two children were constantly struggling financially. But since we started well-drilling, our family has had a fairly stable income, providing us with better conditions to support our children's education.”

Mr. Nguyen Van Dung is one of the long-time well drillers in the area. Photo: Duc Chung

Mr. Dung had previously struggled with various jobs, working as a factory worker, cutting glue for hire, or doing odd jobs... yet his family's life remained a constant cycle of borrowing from one place to patching another. Luck came to Mr. Dung when he got a job as an assistant drilling wells for someone in the neighborhood. After many years working as an assistant, with experience, some personal capital, and additional loans from relatives and the bank, Mr. Dung invested in his own well drilling rig, and since then his work has become increasingly successful.

According to Mr. Dung's estimate, there are currently about 30 well-drilling machines in Tien Thanh commune, with approximately 20 of them belonging to people in Nhan Tien hamlet. Compared to previous years, the number of drilling machines has decreased significantly due to rising labor and fuel costs; some provinces have also developed well-drilling as a profession, thus narrowing the market. However, during this hot weather, most of the machines in the commune are busy.
Mr. Nguyen Van Nguyen (42 years old), residing in Nhan Tien hamlet, Tien Thanh commune, said: “I have been drilling wells for over 20 years. Initially, with limited capital, drilling with electric drills was hard work. Now, my brother and I have jointly invested in two pneumatic drilling machines worth about 1.5 billion VND. During the hot season, we all have more work than we can handle because the demand for water is constantly increasing.”

In the early days of the profession, well drilling only served the needs of the district. Now, most of the workers in the village work in various provinces across the country, such as Ha Tinh, Thanh Hoa, Hoa Binh, Lang Son, Ha Giang , the Central Highlands, Kon Tum… Some groups of workers even go to Laos to work.

A team of workers in Nhan Tien village is drilling wells for local households. Photo: Duc Chung

Mr. Dang Van Mieng, head of Nhan Tien hamlet, said: "The pioneers in well drilling in the village are Mr. Nguyen Van Chat (58 years old) and Mr. Nguyen Vuong Thong (57 years old). These days, all the teams of workers are out working, so if customers want to meet them or call for well drilling services, the only way is to contact them by phone."

According to the well-drilling machine owners, each team needs about three people: a main operator (the machine owner), an assistant, and a driver to transport the machine. Currently, in the village, some households have invested in all three machines, like Mr. Hung's family, or have two machines like Mr. Luc's, and they work continuously day and night.

According to the well drillers, the main well-drilling season starts around May, June, and July, because the weather is hot and dry during this time, causing water shortages in many areas. However, work is available year-round. People hire well drillers for domestic water use, irrigation, agricultural production on hillsides, or construction projects. On average, each well drilled costs around 5-10 million VND in labor, but for deep, large wells in difficult terrain, the cost can reach hundreds of millions of VND. Thanks to this, well drillers earn an average of 10-30 million VND per month, and those with work can earn between 100-300 million VND per year.

bna_#.jpg — Many households have invested in modern drilling machines to meet current needs. Photo: Duc Chung

Mr. Phan Van Vu, Chairman of the People's Committee of Tien Thanh commune, said: "For a long time, Nhan Tien village has had the reputation of being a 'well-drilling village'. Currently, although many older people have retired from the profession, Nhan Tien village still has many valuable pneumatic well-drilling machines worth from 800 million VND to 1.8 billion VND per machine. Thanks to the well-drilling profession, the lives of the people working in this field have become much more prosperous."

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