Urban homeless shelters would provide three meals a day to those living in and around the premises to help people combat the spread of coronavirus outbreak during the 21-day nationwide lockdown. The Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry said on Sunday that three meals a day would be provided to around 1 lakh people living in and around 1,367 shelters for the homeless in cities.
Not only the Government agencies but religious organisations and community kitchens have come forward to provide meals to daily wagers and migrants due to lockdown.
HUA Ministry secretary, Durga Shanker Mishra, said that three meals a day would be provided to around 1 lakh people living in and around 1,500 shelters for the homeless in the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihood Mission (DAY-NRLM) shelters. He said expenditure of up to 100 per person per day could be incurred from the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM) and State missions for giving food to the homeless in and around DAY-NULM shelters.
In a letter to all States and Union Territories, the HUA ministry said that there is urgent requirement to support them as they do not have available sources of livelihood right now. "All states across the country have been advised that newly added homeless/ vulnerable persons should be scanned for fever or other symptoms & referred to the hospital, if suspected, before allowing them to stay in the shelter", it said.
“Also, caretaker of the shelter should ensure awareness for staying indoor, taking care of recommended hand wash using soap/ sanitiser and full cleanliness & hygiene inside and outside campus among the residents,” it said.
In Punjab, gurudwaras have taken a lead in providing food and Punjab police personnel are engaged in distributing food packets. “In the past two days, policemen have distributed 1.5 lakh food packets,” said a Punjab police statement, adding that milk and dry rations are also being handed out. In Kolkata, community kitchens are providing food to street dwellers and poor people living in the 27-night shelters run by the Kolkata Municipal Corporation.
The Chhattisgarh Government is providing food packets to the homeless and poor people in the state in all 28 districts with the help of police.
The Union Ministry of Home Affairs has already issued an advisory to all States to make arrangements for the stranded workers: “States/UTs need to explore measures by involving various agencies, including NGOs, to provide food and shelter with basic amenities like clean drinking water, sanitation,” it said.
Social and religious organisations have started distributing food to the migrants, daily wagers, and the poor, even as the state governments have opened up community kitchens and shelter homes to serve them. More than half of these 13 million migrated out of just three states – Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan. Also, more than half of the migrants move to just four states – Maharashtra, Delhi, Gujarat and Karnataka – primarily in search of work in cities such as Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Bengaluru and Delhi.