URBAN POOR

On June 18, 2019, the New Okhla Industrial Development Authority (NOIDA) sent a team of personnel and machinery to reclaim a 5-acre plot along the Dadri-Surajpur-Chalera (DSC) road in Sector 48 (Map 1 below). The plot, a part of the Barola village agricultural land, was acquired for developing NOIDA in 1976. The Authority claims that most landowners took compensation for the loss of their land. Since the official master plan of the city (NOIDA Master Plan 2031) shows the plot as a ‘green belt’, the marble market that sprouted there in early 2000s, alongside some old and new pucca residences,…

It's a pleasant dawn in early June; however, 52-year-old Zareena is fidgety and keeps checking the time. It's just 6.30 am. Before long, a teenage boy opens a gate and hordes of people make their way through it to the massive well at Easwari Nagar of Zamin Pallavaram. In a firm voice, Muthu, the caretaker of the well asks people to follow the queue according to their token number. Zareena’s number is sixteen, which means she has to wait for all the fifteen members to get their share of water. The tokens are distributed on lottery basis every Sunday, and…

A clean, well-maintained OSR park lies next to the Main road in Elcot Avenue of Shollinganallur inviting the nearby residents for a stroll. Krishna and Lakshmi are the caretakers of this park and like them, there are other caretaker families looking after the four other OSR parks in the locality. Krishna and Lakshmi are one of the many families appointed by the Corporation to look after the OSR parks. They live in the park, where the day begins at 5 AM for them as they start trimming the bushes, cleaning the park and watering the plants. "We seldom water the…

Far from Myanmar, their homeland, here they feel safe, but these 85 Rohingyas are not at home in the refugee camp in Kelambakkam. Dingy rooms that barely have ventilation, narrow stairways, cluttered spaces and untidy surroundings -- the camp located on the outskirts of Chennai paints a sorry picture. The deplorable living conditions probably don't bother the Rohingya Muslims as much as they should, for they are happy to be alive. But does it give them a decent quality of life? No. Space is the biggest constraint, a factor that is driving many refugees away from the camps. Each room is…

A walk along our neighbourhoods in Bengaluru will indicate the vibrancy of some of our streets. Colourful carts of green and other bright colours with a fresh supply of vegetables, fruits and flowers are therapy for the eyes, and also ensure we buy the required vitamins and minerals for our well-being. The carts of street food that offer a quick snack after shopping, or the much-needed energy after too long a day to cook dinner at home, are such a blessing. More importantly, the little stalls in unexpected corners selling just what you were looking for - such as a…

This article is supported by SVP Cities of India Fellowship “I have aged parents to take care of, and two younger brothers to educate. That’s one of the reasons I am doing my MBA.” After completing 12th standard from a government school in Bongaigaon district, Assam, 23-year-old Merajul Hoque has come a long way, quite literally (around 2700 kms, in case you are wondering). An employee of the multinational security company G4S, he has been working as a security guard on deputation to a family in Bengaluru for over three years. While the term chowkidar has become popular for all the…

28-year-old Kamlesh Kumar moved to Uttar Pradesh’s Noida from Patna eight years ago, in pursuit of a better life. Kumar is one among thousands of rickshaw pullers (rickshaw-wallahs), mostly in their mid-20s or early 30s, who moved to Noida in the Delhi National Capital Region (NCR), to try their luck and earn better wages and better standards of living than they could dream of in their home towns. Reality however has been less benevolent. Noida or Gautam Buddh Nagar’s rickshaw wallahs often find themselves constantly trying to juggle the hardships of rent, finding cheap food and getting affordable medical treatment.…

Sriperumbudur election results on May 23 saw the DMK’s TR Baalu emerge the winner. He beat his nearest rivals Vaithilingam A (PMK) and Sridhar M (MNM) with a comfortable margin. Sriperumbudur is one of the largest parliamentary constituencies in Tamil Nadu. It is a manufacturing hub and is home to many automobile production units. Sriperumbudur parliamentary constituency consists of Maduravoyal, Ambattur, Alandur, Sriperumbudur(SC), Pallavaram and Tambaram assembly constituencies. According to the Election Commission of India’s website, the constituency has a total of  2253041 voters. The constituency went to polls on April 18, 2019, in the second phase of the 17th…

Saritha M, a 26-year-old from Kodungaiyur suffered from skin infections for as long as she could remember. Multiple visits to hospitals would bring temporary respite, but permanent recovery remained elusive. "Two years ago, I shifted from Kodungaiyur after my marriage. Soon afterward, my skin infection was completely cured," said Saritha, concluding that the polluted groundwater in her locality was the reason behind the infections. "My doctor is certain that the infection had been caused by dangerous chemicals in the water. Even today, if I stay at my mother's house for more than ten days, the infection reappears. It takes a…

Bengaluru is the second city in India, after Mumbai, to have Dry Waste Collection Centres (DWCCs). Since 2012, BBMP has been setting up these centres in the city. While 198 DWCCs have been sanctioned for Bengaluru, 166 are functional, with capacity ranging from 0.5 to 4.5 tons a day. DWCCs are operated with the participation of waste-pickers and informal waste collectors. Thirty three DWCCs that are operated by waste-pickers, are supported by the NGO Hasiru Dala. These 33 DWCCs have special orders to engage in the bi-weekly collection of dry waste directly. DWCCs were set up to provide decentralised dry…