Kriti Agrawal
The Delhi High Court issued a notice to the Delhi government regarding a petition that sought the provision of three meals per day to inmates of all shelter homes in the city during the ongoing pandemic.
The court requested a response from the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) on the Bandhua Mukti Morcha’s petition (BMM).
The BMM, which works for the country’s marginalized citizens, has pursued enforcement of DUSIB’s October board meeting decision to provide three meals a day in shelter homes.
According to the Delhi government’s Standing Counsel, the three-meal-a-day scheme was discontinued last year, and only two meals are now offered.
According to the petition, the majority of the staff living in shelter homes do not have any documentation.
Some are inter-state migrant workers who do not have a ration card issued by the Delhi government. As a result, the workers have few options for feeding themselves and their children.
BMM said, “It has been confirmed that people are ill in the shelter homes. However, the isolation centers that were operational in 2020 have been closed.”
In addition, the petition requested that “Soaps, detergents, hand sanitizers, handwash, and masks be given to urban homeless in all shelter homes in the national capital, as well as medical aid.”
