Only 2 shelters for homeless victims

NEW DELHI: Gautam sat glued to a TV on Wednesday for the judgment in the Salman Khan case. The 22-year-old hawker, who goes by only his first name, has seen death from up close. He was pushing his cart when a Maruti car hit him near Kashmere Gate in April. The driver fled and police took Gautam to a hospital, but he was soon turned out. For almost a month now he has been recovering at a shelter for homeless people run by Centre for Equity Studies at Yamuna Pushta near ISBT, Kashmere Gate.
Late at night when TOI visited the shelter, Gautam struggled with his plastered leg to sit up for a better view of the TV. For him, it wasn't about a celebrity but a sense of association with the Mumbai tragedy. Other men in the room, some perched on hospital beds and others on cotton mats, also watched in silence. They all had similar stories ofs to tell. With the government doing nothing to help homeless victims ofs, this recovery shelter near Nigambodh Ghat is the only refuge they have. M E Gufran, manager at the shelter, said hospitals don't admit injured and sick homeless people without attendants.
Dinesh Kumar from UP has been laid up with a broken hip bone ever since a bike hit him. "I have been without work and am surviving with the help of the recovery shelter staff," Kumar said. Another man, who had come to work in Delhi from Bareilly, was also injured in a hit-and-run.
With the Mumbai case in focus now, they wondered whether it would help them and the thousands of other victims whose cases are not highlighted in any way.
Every month at least eights victims are brought to the shelter that offers care and medical aid to homeless people. Most victims complain of police's indifference and the callous attitude of doctors at government hospitals. The shelter has space for more than 40 patients. "This was an ordinary night shelter but it was converted when we saw that there was no aftercare facility for homeless patients," a worker said.
The only other recovery shelter for homeless people is in Kalkaji and it is run by an NGO, Society For Promotion of Youth & Masses. There too 8-10 victims are brought every month. Most of them have been injured in hit-and-runs.