Ahead of the G20 summit in New Delhi, a large-scale demolition drive put countless poor families on the streets. These people whose homes were destroyed by bulldozers are now living on the pavements with their meagre belongings and little children.
According to reports, at least 49 demolition drives were conducted from April to July rendering many families homeless during a scorching summer.
Expectations shattered
Ironically most of these poor people had expected that the coming G-20 summit would help them alleviate their misery. But to their shock and horror, they realised that the government looked upon them as an unwanted lot when it came to beautification of the roads for the VIP movements.
Many of these poor people had lived in their huts for nearly three decades and had found work as domestic helpers and labourers in nearby localities. Not only were their sources of income derived from the neighbourhood, they had also managed to find schools for their children in the same areas.
One such settlement was named Janta Camp and was located near the Pragati Maidan which is the venue for the summit meeting. The Janta Camp was among the first places to be hit by the demolition drive. Several video clips of the demolition have emerged which show the frail huts being torn down mercilessly by bulldozers as the residents stood around and wept.
Sad experiences
“We were crying and begging them to stop but they refused to listen to our pleas. The bulldozers even broke our handpump and we have no water,” said a distraught woman whose home was reduced to rubble. Among those displaced was a man named Mohammed Shameem and his family. He told the media: “We thought that the meeting of these big leaders would result in some beneficial steps for poor people like us. But the opposite has happened. These big and rich people will come, sit on our graves, and eat delicious food.”
According to reports nearly three lakh people from areas such as Yamuna floodplains and Tughlaqabad have been displaced. Another person whose home was destroyed was Kumar, an employee of the Pragati Maidan. “I have two children aged five and ten. I was sending them to a nearby government school. If I have to go away from here, my children’s education will suffer. I don’t know where I should enroll them now,” he said. His youngest child is only nine months old but his family is forced to live on the streets.
Not living up to the motto
It is ironic that although the motto of the meet is Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (the world is one family), the poorer members of this global family have been victimised and robbed of their essential needs. No alternative arrangements have been made for them. They are being forced to live under trees on the roadside while the world leaders will be welcomed and shown a facade of a grand and prosperous city.
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