NEW DELHI: A late-night spin by three youths ended in disaster as the driver lost control of the car and ran over four labourers on the Safdarjung airport flyover in south Delhi on Monday. The victims were working overnight on Commonwealth Games projects on the flyover which is partially blocked to traffic. Among those killed was a boy around 14 years old.

Shahid Khan, a 24-year-old medical student in Ukraine, was at the wheel when the accident occurred. Khan, who arrived in Delhi on vacation only recently, fled the spot, leaving his cousins behind. Besides the four workers killed, eight others, including a woman, were injured.

While Shahid is still absconding, 22-year-old Alam and his brother were let off after questioning. “We have enough leads and hope to nab him in the next couple of hours,” said an officer.

Lodhi Road police have registered a case of death due to rash and negligent driving.

Delhi’s makeover for the Commonwealth Games 2010 has brought unending suffering and misery for thousands of poor living in the city as hundreds of slums accommodating them are being demolished for the city beautification drive.

Polio-affected Zaheer with his displaced family (photo: Gaurav)

Come October 3, Delhi will be all decked up to exhibit its splendid and metamorphosed image for thousands of international tourists, who will throng grand stadiums across the city to watch their respective countries’ sportspersons participate in the Commonwealth Games 2010.

However, the cheer and excitement in the run-up to the Games is accompanied by the painful cries that were drowned by the roar of bulldozers. Behind the frothy façade, lies an unpleasant story of forceful eviction, demolition, homelessness and helplessness.

With its ambitious plan of taking Delhi’s infrastructure to an international stature, the government is trampling upon the poor’s rights in the name of beautifying the city. This mega sporting event has robbed millions of poor of their shelters who are bearing the brunt of beautification drive for the 12-day extravaganza. By the end of the Games, as Delhi’s Chief Minister herself as accepted, three million people will not have roof over their heads.

The demolition drive has been on for quite some time. January 9, 2009, was a doomsday for 605 inhabitants of Prabhu Market slum cluster in Sewa Nagar in South Delhi. Their houses were reduced to rubble in front of their eyes. All the houses were flattened by MCD (Municipal Corporation of Delhi) bulldozers to pave way for the construction of a huge parking lot for the opening and closing ceremony of the Games.

With its ambitious plan of taking Delhi’s infrastructure to an international stature, the government is trampling upon the rights of poor in the name of beautifying the city.

57-year-old Shanti Devi, is one of the hundreds to have suffered for the ‘world-class’ event whose Jhuggi was demolished. With no other place to take shelter, her ailing husband couldn’t survive Delhi’s chilling weather and died in January 2009, leaving her with nothing but piles of broken bricks.

“An officer would lose patience if he doesn’t find his chair in the office at the right place. Imagine our plight; we have no roof over our heads for the past one-and-a-half years. We have lost everything and now have nothing except memories of our home,” says Sunil, another slum resident.

The people of this slum cluster were residing there for the past 40 years. All of them claim to have ration cards or voter ID cards. Either of the two documents makes them eligible for relocation if evicted from their land. The residents have been running from pillar to post for their right but their struggle remains futile.

One of the evicted families near Barapullah in Jangpura (photo: Gaurav)

On January 12, 2009, in response to a writ petition filed by these slum dwellers, the Delhi High Court had ordered MCD to relocate them as soon as possible. Ironically, not a single displaced person has been re-accommodated till date. This amounts to contempt of court but the government is unperturbed.

To avoid possibilities of collective protests, demolitions were carried out in parts and without warnings. “The authorities did not serve any prior notice to us. They came with police force and demolished our houses within minutes,” says Dinesh Kumar.

He alleged that just two days after the demolition, the Election Commission wrote off their names from its records to prevent claims for resettlement.

“We have lost all hope, as no one listens to us. We approached a lawyer to file a case in the court but he demanded a fee of Rs 50,000. Left with no choice, we somehow managed to collect this huge amount and paid to him, but till date nothing has come out of the case,” rues Shri Ram who is a street vendor in the Prabhu Market.

Blinded by the beautification drive, the insensitive government did not even spare the localities earlier planned for the physically challenged.

With their settlement demolished, these physically challenged people
live on the pavements (photo: Gaurav)

On January 10, 2009, giant bulldozers wrought havoc in Viklang Basti (Colony for the handicapped) by rendering 50 physically-challenged people homeless. The high magnitude of injustice meted out to them comes to the fore when one gets to know the reason for their eviction: To cover a drain behind the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.

With a fate worse than death, these poor handicapped people are now living near the Hazrat Nizamuddin flyover. What adds injury to their insult is the regular bashing by the Delhi Police for being found residing near the flyover.

“Why are they after us? What have we done to them? We are not against Games but to welcome the Videshi (foreigners), why are they troubling the Swadeshi (nationals)?” Mohammad Alam bombards this reporter with questions.

“In winters we shivered, in summers we burn under the sun. Now, during the rainy season we are not allowed to stay under the flyover. Where do we go? I can’t look after my 4-year-old boy, as I can hardly walk. My wife cannot find work because people now confuse us for illegal settlers without residence,” says polio-affected Zaheer, who inconsolably weeps for his fate.

The living conditions at Bawana site are even worse than those in slums of Delhi. Many residents are yet to get their allotted land which was due to be handed over within three months of their arrival here. They live in makeshift houses with no water supply, no electricity and poor sanitation.

In that very fateful month (January 2009), 140 jhuggis were reduced to dust in Bengali camp behind Thyagraj Stadium. At a short distance from this camp, was the Gadia Lohar Basti (small colony established 40 years ago to settle nomadic tribe of blacksmiths) which housed about 20 families. These poor families of blacksmiths were also not spared from the axe of demolition during the ongoing beautification drive.

They now live in plastic sheet-covered houses, in what can be termed as harmful and, of course, inhuman conditions.

Though the government may be basking in the glory of enforcing the Right to Education Act, this Right seems to be a distant dream for the children of the displaced families. They are denied admission in the government schools as their resident proofs are no longer valid after the evictions.

“This is an elitist development paradigm where you can’t provide space to the poor. The elite want the poor to be moved out of Delhi yet want all the essential services provided by them,” says Dr. Gilbert Sebastian, a researcher at Indian Social Institute, who is working for the displaced families from Saibaba Camp in Lodhi Colony.

Life is miserable for these women after demolition of their homes

Intoxicated with the beautification drive, the Delhi government set an example of utter disregard for the dignity and rights of the poor in December 2009 – hundreds of homeless people were left shivering under the sky in chilling winters when their makeshift night shelters were demolished as part of beautification of Delhi for the Commonwealth Games.

The worst part of this demolition drive is that despite being entitled for resettlement, most of the displaced people have been left stranded by the indifferent Delhi government which has turned a blind eye to the basic rights of the evicted.

The Delhi government has prepared a list of 44 slum clusters which would be demolished and relocated prior to the Games. The residents would be relocated under the Rajiv Ratan Awas Yojna at the resettlement sites like Bawana, Holambi Kalan, and Sawda Ghevra among others.

“Though many have been rendered homeless, we are implementing measures to relocate as many as possible. We are looking into the matter,” an official of MCD’s Slum and JJ Cluster Department, who is not authorised to talk to media, told d-sector.

This resettlement site in Bawana is worse than the Delhi slums

When this reporter visited Bawana JJ Colony, one of the resettlement sites, the claims made by government for relocation policy were nowhere near realisation. Many residents feel they have been taken for a ride in the name of relocation and the so-called resettlement sites expose the callous attitude of the government.

The living conditions at Bawana are even worse than those in the slums of Delhi. Many residents are yet to get their allotted land, which was due to be handed over within three months of their arrival here. They live in makeshift houses with no water supply, no electricity and poor sanitation. Locals say more than 100 people have died due to abysmal living conditions.

“I came here (Bawana) with hopes of leading a new life, but I have not been given an inch of land which they had promised me,” rues a 52-year-old widow Chuniya Devi whose house was demolished in Sawan Park of Ashok Vihar.

Located on the outskirt of Northwest Delhi, Bawana has proved to be a bane for these displaced people. With local industries requiring semi-skilled labour, the resettled people are out of work. Their population includes vendors, cobblers, rickshaw pullers and daily wage labourers.

“First, they destroyed our houses, then they dumped us in a deserted place which is 50 km away from Delhi. Commuting to and fro Delhi costs Rs 40, and my per-day earning was mere Rs 125. I had to quit my work,” says Intejar who was a rickshaw puller in Delhi.

Children of displaced families in Bawana lack access to schools

Apart from the loss of livelihoods in Bawana, education of children is also a major problem. Most of the children are denied admission in the school as their parent have not been allotted plot by the government. Without the residents’ proofs, these children cannot get admission.

“It is not only Bawana, but every resettlement colony of Delhi has dismal living conditions for these displaced families. The Commonwealth Games is just an alibi to get rid of slums which are an eyesore for the ruling establishment,” says Brahma Pandey, one of the members of a leading NGO Hazard Centre.

Though the city may have donned a stunning international look, it can not keep up the pretence that everything is hunk-dory. The middle class of India may find pride in hosting the Commonwealth Games, but for the thousands of poor of Delhi the sporting extravaganza has brought unending suffering and misery. The Games will soon begin and get over but the pain and anguish of these wretched souls will remain with them for years. But the innocent little children or the helpless physically challenged, despite being evicted from their shelters, must learn to hide their tears so as not to spoil the moment of ‘national glory’.

Gaurav Sharma  |  gaurav@d-sector.org

Just a stone’s throw away from Shadipur Metro Station in New Delhi is an elongated slum cluster Kathputli Colony. Whiff of fetid air and stench of stale urine assail your senses the moment you enter the locality. Stray pigs, heaps of garbage, clogged drains, dingy lanes and mosquitoes buzzing all around will accompany you, as you move about in the slums.

There are thousands of slum clusters in Delhi where a mammoth population is living a gruelling life with no basic amenities. Kathputli Colony is, one such slum, riddled with acute water shortage, dilapidated mud huts, abysmal health and education services, corrupt Public Distribution System and a myriad of other problems.

While Delhi has come a long way to boast of its ‘world class’ facilities, dismal infrastructure in the slums is a legacy of decades of neglect.

For a population of over 7000 and an area of 5.22 hectares, the slum has only one hand pump which breathed its last two months ago due to excessive handling forcing the inhabitants to quench their thirst from sources outside the colony. Braving the scorching sun and heat waves, women and children fetch containers filled with water all the way from a community tap installed outside the slum.

It is ironic that everyday gallons of water are showered on the lush green field of Delhi’s several Golf Courses used by ultra-rich but these slum-dwellers yearn for even a single drop of water in this hot torrid summer.

The tragedy of these poor is that in every election politicians promise them better life to get their votes. “The politicians come and go but our problems remain the same. Delhi’s Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit does nothing for poor except uttering platitude. Eight years ago she had promised that every house would have regular water tap but till date there is no water supply let alone water taps”, says Sudha who lives in parched Kathputli colony.

It is ironic that everyday gallons of water are showered on the lush green field of Delhi’s several Golf Courses used by ultra-rich but these slum-dwellers yearn for even a single drop of water in this hot torrid summer.

“Kathputli colony is a virtual hell. I wish I had a better place to live in. Dirty drains lie clogged for weeks, as nobody comes to clean them. Litter and Kathputli colony are inseparable,” rues 24-year-old Harsh.

“It is better to languish in a jail than living in this slum. Every day, I have to spend Rs. 7 for bathing and relieving in Sulabh toilets. Had there been community toilets in the colony, I would not have to spend Rs 200 per month out of a meager monthly earning of Rs 1500,” says 37-year-old widow Lajju who has five dependent children.

While Delhi has witnessed huge budget expenditure on improving civic infrastructure and beautification in the last decade, a tiny portion of that spending on providing sanitation facilities in Delhi’s slums could have spared the women embarrassment of defecating and bathing in open.

This is makeshift bathroom for women living in the slum
(photo: Gaurav Sharma)

Delhi’s comfort obsessed middle class may find it difficult to stomach but a number of these slum dwellers are forced to skip their meals due to soaring food prices and inefficient Public Distribution System (PDS). The gross irregularities and rampant corruption in PDS have taken a massive toll on the well being of these poor people.

Prabhu, one of the Pradhans (Community Heads) of this slum, says that as many as 1,500 inhabitants are without ration cards, making it impossible for them to access PDS outlets for cheaper ration. In 2007, 1550 people had applied for the renewal of ration cards which were due to expire the same year. But only 25-30 people have received their respective ration cards till now, he told d-sector.

Rummaging around his torn and tattered bag, 60-year-old Harsukhiya fishes out a receipt issued by the ration office for his new (ration) card. Recently, he discovered much to his horror, that his application for a new ration card has been cancelled.

What is worth mentioning here that many residents are facing the threat of eviction as a real estate firm Raheja Developers (owner of a prominent English weekly) has been given the contract to develop 2,800 flats for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) in Kathputli colony. The catch is that the ration cards of many old residents haven’t been renewed and if they fail to produce it to the concerned authorities they will lose the right to rehabilitation and their entitlement to these flats.

60-year-old Harsukhiya is too old to work. He does not have a ration card either.
(photo: Gaurav Sharma)

Their eviction may not spring surprise as in the run-up to the Commonwealth Games (CWG), the Delhi government led by Sheila Dikshit, in its obsession to beautify the city state, has rendered many poor homeless. Independent experts estimate that nearly 3 million people are likely to be rendered homeless in Delhi by the end of CWG.

Like other basic amenities, health services are also in doldrums. No dweller wants to go to government hospitals until there is a serious illness. People say doctors and staff in government hospitals do not treat them properly. They feel it is better to have speedy, though costlier, private treatment than doing several rounds of government hospitals.

Despite such odds, the slum residents dream of a better life for their children but lack of proper education facilities disappoint them. Most children in this locality are victims of shoddy education standards of municipal schools. Either they play truant or stop going to schools. They can easily be sighted playing cards in the open.

“Who doesn’t want to go school? We can only afford government schools where teachers never pay attention to children from slums. I flunked twice in 7th standard and finally quit education. My mother could not afford my useless education,” rues teenager Mukesh, who has now started helping her mother in street-vending.

When d-sector tried to contact Mrs Vidya Devi, Municipal Councillor of the area, she was not available for a comment. Despite several attempts by this reporter to call on her official number mentioned in the MCD’s directory, she could not be reached. Every time, her husband Lala Ram received the phone and offered to answer all queries on behalf of his wife.

“You can ask me whatever questions you have. I am looking after the problems of entire area including Kathputli colony.” Lala Ram told d-sector over phone.

Certainly, empowerment of women through reservation of seats in elected bodies is still a distant dream. If husband of a municipal councillor runs the show in India’s capital, we can well imagine the conditions in far away villages.

“Sheila Dikshit is doing everything to spruce up the city for Commonwealth Games but is least concerned about the plight of poor like us. I was born and brought up in Kathputli colony. I am now father of three children. Nothing has changed from the time since I was born. The government has spent thousands of crores on this city but, this colony has not seen even a single rupee,” laments 30-year-old Lallu.

With the Commonwealth Games around the corner, New Delhi is all decked up to showcase its overhauled infrastructure, the metamorphosis of which cost billions of rupees. While sprawling stadia, serpentine flyovers, manicured gardens, and spacious parking lots have come to symbolise the galloping growth of India, government officials cannot resist the temptation to blow the trumpet of creating a “world class” city.

However, behind this new-found glitter lies a gloom which reveals the dark side of Delhi’s development. The government may have decided to erect bamboo screens to hide the slums in Delhi but the horrendous living conditions in slums cannot be glossed over.

As this reporter was about to leave Kathputli Colony, a shriveled old man asked: “Why do these ladies (social activists) who come on TV regularly only talk about the rights and plight of tribals of distant regions? Why don’t they take up our cause? They should come and spend a night in Kathputli Colony.”

Little did he know that for our celebrity activists living in a slum for a day would be much more difficult than spending a week in a jungle!

Gaurav Sharma  |  gaurav@d-sector.org

This is a short request for you to do something simple that makes a difference: sign a petition!

We are asking you to stand with our members in Delhi who are being  hammered by the preparations for the Commonwealth Games which will be held in India for the first time this October. We are asking you to join us in opposition to the Indian Government’s displacement of thousands of slum dwellers in East Delhi and their attacks on the livelihoods of tens of thousands of informal workers from rag pickers  to bicycle rickshaw pullers all in the name of burnishing the image of Delhi as a world class city and attempting to sweep the poor off the streets and byways to make them invisible to athletes and guests at the Games.

We are asking representatives of the Commonwealth Games Federation to assure that we receive justice as well as the sponsoring committee from various countries sending teams to compete from area that were formerly part of the British Empire. We are sending these petitions to anyone who will listen, including the Queen, in a plea for justice before tens of thousands lose homes and jobs because of the Games.

Join us by signing the petition at www.commonwealthgamescampaign.org

Members of the ACORN Hawkers Union along with many other unions organized a sit in demonstration on 21^st June 2010 in Delhi in support of the Commonwealth Games Campaign and against displacement & harassment that have been occuring across Delhi as officials prepare for the games.

The protest was led by the Delhi unit of the National Hawkers Federation.

The 60,000+ member British Columbia Government Employees Union (BCGEU) in Canada, became the first major labor organization to pass a resolution of support for workers and slum dwellers in East Delhi receiving justice and protection from loss of housing and livelihood from the upcoming Commonwealth Games.  They were followed only days later by the Prince George District Labour Council (British Columbia, Canada).

This is an important victory and important early step in moving the campaign forward.

We hope to announce more endorsers soon.

The cost of the Commonwealth Games (CWG) will be borne by the poor and the socially underprivileged of the city, it seems.

According to a report released by the NGO, Housing and Land Rights Network (HLRN) on Thursday, Rs 265 crore from the Scheduled Caste Sub Plan (Special Component Plan) for Delhi has been diverted to the CWG fund in the year 2009-10.
 
“If one looks at the diversion of funds since 2008 the amount is much more, in the range of Rs 550 crore,” said Miloon Kothari, coordinator, HLRN.

The report demanded an independent enquiry into the transfer of funds.

The Delhi Finance Minster, AK Walia, refused to say anything on the issue. “I cannot say anything regarding this at the moment. I will have to check the records before responding,” he said.

The report, called Whose Wealth? Whose Commons?, also condemned the Games for being anti-poor .

“The money that is being used to beautify the city should have been used to provide housing for the poor,” said Kothari.

The report also gives the example of governments of New Zealand and Trinidad and Tobago, which did not support the CWG bid of their sports authorities as the Games would prove too costly.

“The benefit of the games will go only to corporates, especially the real estste conglomerates. The poor people will not get anything,” said Dunu Roy, director, Hazards Centre.

India’s bid document for the CWG estimated the cost of hosting the games at Rs 1,899 crore but official estimates have put the cost at Rs 10,000 crore, the report states.

“The streetscaping project in Lodhi Roadcost Rs 18.55 crore, twice the amount had bid for the entire beautification plan. Why?” said Shalini Mishra, co-writer of the report.

The report was released by Justice AP Shah, retired Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court. He condemned the government for ignoring the poor of the city.