*Ambika Pandit* *Jan 3, 2011* Braving the chilly winds , fog and drizzle , hundreds of men can be seen sleeping on the footpaths , roads and even muddy land alongthe sprawling Yamuna Pushta across the Inter-S tate Bus Terminus at Kashmere Gate.
This long stretch has as many as six night shelters set up for thehomeless with a capacity of almost 600 each inside. By night this stretch along the river turns into an open dormitory for the poor of the city as hundreds of labourers , daily wagers , rickshaw pullers , beggars and vagabonds flock to this cold, dark corner to find a place to sleep in. . This area is a tale of two extremes . On the one hand , there are many who are forced to brave the wind as some of the night shelters are packed to full capacity while on the other hand , there are others who prefer to sleep out even as a warm night shelter stands in close proximity . This other category makes up for a significant number too. On a night out to take stock of night shelters , Times City found that it is not merely lack of night shelters that keeps people out on the streets but also many socioeconomic factors . We discovered a life with its own hierarchies , rules and methods at work as the homeless , estimated at over a lakh in the city , find different ways to beat the cold after the sun sets, making way for a cold, wet night. At Yamuna Bazaar , Sanjay prepared to sleep . Huddled under a blanket like the over 50 other occupants , he is relieved to be in the night shelter and away from the cold wet night outside. Sanjay is handicapped and admits that he begs for survival . Even though the shelter can hold 100 people , the occupancy is not 100 per cent . Even the adjoining tent was vacant. Outside one found many men sitting around . Some others could be seen sleeping out in the open . A bit of prodding revealed that those outside were drug addicts and since the shelter has strict rules to ensure discipline inside , they preferred to sit out and smoke. Three men confessed to the high-level of drug dependency and the consequent frustration among the users . "Please help . Drugs are finishing off our bodies ," Rakesh a rag picker , urged. Seeing the severity of the situation , Mother NGO on homeless , St Stephen's hospital<http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/search?q=hospital> , is contemplating starting some de-addiction facilities and counselling for the homeless. Ahead of the shelter a group of men tried hard to sleep under blankets and plastic bubble sheets to beat the cold. One of them who was still awake said that they preferred to sleep there as the shelter at Yamuna bazaar attracted drug addicts and miscreants . He pointed out that he was a daily wager and preferred to sleep there. Some said that they had heard of thefts inside the shelters so they preferred to sleep with their belongings in the open. Besides these social hierarchies , the economics of winter is also at play . There are people who prefer to sleep out in the open so they can get blankets when people go around distributing them along the streets . On seeing our car stop , a poor man rushing to this correspondent hoping to get a blanket and insisted that I give him one . Further ahead another man with a severely infected leg braved the cold with just a blanket . He claimed that he was forced to stay here as the shelters along the Pushta were fully occupied . His claim was vindicated as one found a shelter near Nigambodh Ghat occupied to full capacity . Just outside the shelter many people slept on the road hiding under blankets and bubble sheets also being provided by NGOs for protection. A caretaker said that at times they accommodated people on the floor when the place was full. As one moved further, another under-construction shelter could be seen but it was not yet fully equipped. Homeless people were seen sleeping on the mats covering the floor here for some protection from the cold. Hundreds of people slept in the open reaffirming that more shelters were needed and that the present arrangements were not enough to cater to the large homeless population . "Shelters are just one aspect of the problem . More shelters are needed but there can be no single solution to the problem of homelessness . There are many social and economic factors at work and they need to be dealt with accordingly . For instance , the majority of homeless people are labourers and daily wagers . This category need not suffer if the government and the employers under the respective laws provide them their rightful security , due wages and space ," said Dr Amod Kumar from the state-appointed Mother NGO, St Stephen's Hospital. He further said that other categories of the homeless population comprise mentally ill and elderly people abandoned by families, women who have been deserted or are victims of abuse , drug addicts , alcoholics , petty criminals and children. "These categories need specialized care and planned efforts to bring them into the social framework so that they can be absorbed into society productively and sensitively . Policy orientation and budgeting need to focus on these categories ," Kumar added. According to activists , the homeless population also comprises displaced communities who have come to the capital due to famines and floods in their respective states or are on the streets due to eviction from slums . It is believed that such communities like to live together and don't prefer to go to a shelter , thereby making a rehabilitation plan essential for them. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Some-prefer-the-sky-as-roof/articleshow/7208405.cms -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Mental Health Advocacy (News 'N Views) India" group. 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