Migrants stuck in city suffer as porta cabin shelters turn ovens

Hundreds of them who are living in porta cabin shelters have to contend with the unbearable heat as these box-like metallic structures have turned into ovens due to lack of ventilation.

The rising summer temperatures in Delhi has added to the woes of thousands of migrants who are stuck in the city after the nationwide lockdown was announced on March 24, to stop the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), was extended till May 3.

Migrants staying at a temporary shelter home in the Govt. Boys Senior Sec School on day seventeen during 21-day nationwide lockdown to limit the spread of coronavirus. (Ajay Aggarwal/HT PHOTO)

Hundreds of them who are living in porta cabin shelters have to contend with the unbearable heat as these box-like metallic structures have turned into ovens due to lack of ventilation. The mercury had crossed the 40 degrees Celsius mark three days ago, which is four notches above the season’s average. The city recorded a maximum of 37.8 degrees Celsius, two notches less than that recorded on Thursday, and a minimum of 23.8 degrees Celsius.

Besides 259 regular shelter homes for the homeless in the city -- of which 112 are porta cabins, 111 in buildings and 36 in tents -- the government has converted 256 school buildings into shelters for migrant workers. As many as 1,435 school buildings have been converted into food distribution centres.

Sitting outside a blue porta cabin shelter in Yamuna Bazar, which has been his home for the past 20 days, Anil Kumar Jatav said it becomes suffocating inside during the day as the roof heats up.

“It is difficult to spend the day inside as the shelter feels like a furnace when the sun is at its peak. Although the shelter has ceiling fans, they hardly have any effect in the absence of ventilation,” said Jatav, a rickshaw puller who hails from Bhind in Madhya Pradesh. He had stayed back in the city for his arthritis treatment at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences but he later learnt that the out-patient services have been suspended.

Shiva (who goes by first name), 27, housed at a porta cabin near Paharganj, said he keeps washing his face and head to beat the heat. “I was brought here by the police when the bus services were cancelled after the lockdown. I used to live in a rented room. I had no idea the heat could be so harsh in here. Back at the room, we had a cooler also. I hope that the government does something to help us survive the heat till the lockdown is over,” he said. Shiva used to work at an eatery at West Delhi’s Janakpuri and belongs to UP’s Hardoi.

Officials in the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB), the nodal agency for arranging shelters for the homeless in the city, said by next week, roofs of porta cabins will be painted white to control the heat. They said they will also install air coolers inside shelters and provide drinking water to its inmates.

Bipin Rai, member, DUSIB, said, “We had a meeting to discuss the measures for a summer action plan. We have already placed an order for at least 500 air coolers. The shelters run from buildings already have air coolers and we are repairing and cleaning them for use. Also, we will place earthen pots at all shelters so that inmates get clean, cold drinking water.”

The situation was better at shelters in buildings, which are better ventilated. “It does feel hot in the day but we sit in the compound under the shade of trees. We are able to sleep well in the night with fans running. After some days, we will need coolers, when the heat becomes unbearable,” said Ram Nath, 53, who lives at a shelter run from a school building in New Rajinder Nagar. Nath is from Bihar’s Muzaffarpur and used to work at a bag-making unit in Paharganj.

However, social activists working with the homeless said every year, many homeless people die of extreme heat and dehydration. “This year, with a larger number of people being housed at shelters because of the lockdown, it becomes imperative that authorities ensure there are adequate arrangements to prevent heat strokes. They should also ensure availability of drinking water as well as medical aid,” said Sunil Kumar Aledia, founder, Centre for Holistic Development (CHD) and national Convener of National Forum for Homeless Housing Rights.

He added that many people have to wait for a long time to even get drinking water delivered to them. “This situation needs to be addressed with the utmost urgency to ensure that people don’t suffer during the lockdown,” he said.