“Till date there has not been a single woman who has come under this roof for safe haven”, claims Mohammed Arshad, caretaker of the Women’s night shelter located at R K Roy Marg in New Delhi . The shelter, which is under the purview of New Delhi Municipal Council (N.D.M.C), was started in 2005.
It was opened for those underprivileged women who sleep in open air, under the foot bridge. They could come along with their children provided he/she is under 12 years of age. But the women do not come here for shelter as they do not want to leave their husbands on the streets. There are 17 rooms which can accommodate around 150 people. The caretaker further states, “The place opens only for 2 months, starting from 15 December to 15 February.” During this period four guards are assigned to work in two shifts between 2p.m and 6 a.m. The maintenance cost for these two months reaches 25000 rupees.
Some women prefer the closeness of their families and stay outdoor inspite of the winter chill. One such family stays under the Moolchand flyover. Aklima, the woman of the family which hails from Bihar says, “We have been shifting in and around the area (Moolchand flyover) for a convenient place for all of us to sleep”. She works as a sweeper along with her husband Muhammad Ali making their family earning of rupees 4000 per month. They have not been officially employed by NDMC. She further adds, “Sometimes clashes also take place among the people living in the streets, thus we are like Nomads”.
As the place is opened only for two months, it remains closed and unguarded for the next ten months. Arshad says “since the walls of the shelter are not high enough (around 9-10 feet) people can easily jump over them which have lead to some incidents of theft in the past”.
The caretaker, pointing towards the blankets and mattresses, says “we have informed the homeless people in the streets about its existence in the vicinity telling them that they can come and sleep free of cost during the night”. However, people like Aklima are not aware of its existence even when it is just a few miles away.
The empty rooms are testimony to the fact that the NDMC’s effort at helping the homeless women has not proved fruitful.
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