E-Paper
Security guards brazen out bitter cold
New Delhi: Sixty-two-year-old Sukhpal Singh, a security guard at a private housing complex in Dwarka, was allowed to work beyond his age of retirement after a special
New Delhi: Sixty-two-year-old Sukhpal Singh, a security guard at a private housing complex in Dwarka, was allowed to work beyond his age of retirement after a special request to the resident welfare association (RWA). The lack of sleep owing to his age usually helps him through his night duties, but the past fortnight’s severe cold has been taking a toll on him. He said that over the last two days especially, when the temperature in the national capital dipped below 2 degrees in several parts of the city, his usual failsafe — hot cups of tea — has also stopped working. Multiple layers of winter clothing bring little relief.
“My wife sends me dinner and a flask full of hot tea to help me stay warm through the night. Nothing has been working now,” Singh, who starts his duty at 6pm and continues till 7.30am the next day, when another guard comes in to take his place for the day, said.
There are two security guards employed by the colony, and both take turns to do the night shifts.
Several security guards deployed outside gated colonies, ATMs and offices of 24x7 companies and shops, across the city are braving the intense cold Delhi has been witness to. On Saturday, Delhi recorded the lowest temperature on a December day since 1996, when the mercury plummeted to 2.4 degree Celsius. In areas such as Lodhi Road and Aya Nagar, the minimum temperature recorded was as low as 1.7 degree Celsius.
The minimum temperature of the day is generally recorded by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) around 2am.
While some security guards tie up with colleagues to burn bonfires to see themselves through the night, others coop themselves inside makeshift rooms to brace them from the severe cold.
“It gets unbearable sometimes, but what can I do? It is part of my job. The worst part is that every two hours, we have been ordered to make rounds of the entire neighbourhood,” said Dhiraj Kumar, a security guard at east Delhi’s Mayur Vihar phase-3.
The Graded Response Action Plan (Grap), prepared by the Supreme Court-appointed Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (Epca), has asked RWAs and private individuals who have appointed security guards to provide heaters to them so that they do not resort to bonfires. However, several RWAs have said this is “not feasible”..
“It is not feasible to provide heaters to security guards. We do, however, provide them with blankets and the required woollens to help them do their duty better,” said Arun Lal, secretary, South Delhi Collective Residents Welfare Association.
Bhure Lal, Epca chief, said that while the pollution monitoring body has issued strict orders to municipal agencies to take action against biomass burning and open fires, the plight of security personnel who have to spend nights outdoors is understandable.
“It’s an issue and we realise that they people find it difficult to cope with the dipping temperature. This is why we have proposed that people come forward and take humanitarian initiatives to help these people,” Lal said.
