Supreme Court judge, Justice B.R. Gavai, on Wednesday asked whether untrammeled freebies lull the poor into a parasitic existence, depriving them of any initiative to find work, join the mainstream and contribute to national development.
“Rather than making them contribute to the development of the nation, are we not creating a sort of parasite? Because of these benefits, people do not want to work,” Justice Gavai, heading a Bench also comprising Justice AG Masih, observed orally.
The Bench was hearing petitions dealing with the lack of sufficient number of night shelters to house the urban homeless in the national capital. At one point, a lawyer submitted that the existing night shelters were uninhabitable.
“Between a shelter which is uninhabitable and sleeping on the road, what is more preferable?” Justice Gavai countered.
The discussion in court also touched on free ration and welfare schemes for the urban homeless, who were usually migrants from the rural parts of the country who came in search of work.
Practical aspects
Justice Gavai said steps to make the poor and the disadvantaged part of the mainstream was better than offering them freebies.
“Look at the practical aspects… Nobody wants to work for they will get free ration… We have recognised the rights to shelter and work. But at the same time, should it not be balanced?” Justice Gavai asked.
Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing on the petitioners’ side, submitted that the rural poor migrate to urban parts for work.
“If they have work, they will work. They have come to the city to find work. The jobs they get are menial… They cannot even afford shelter,” Bhushan addressed the Bench.
Attorney General R. Venkataramani, for the Centre, informed the court that the government was framing schemes to help alleviate urban poverty. These schemes would include shelter for the urban homeless.
The court directed the Centre to file an affidavit in six weeks, detailing the time required to finalise and implement the schemes and what aspects they would cover.
Appearing for the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB), senior advocate Devadutt Kamat submitted that night shelters were well-provided for, and officials do the rounds to convince the homeless to come to these shelters, they however refuse to do so.
Crucial role
The apex court has been looking out for the welfare of the poor and homeless, noting that the right to shelter and safety was a fundamental right.
In 2016, the top court had observed that the city’s poor shiver in the winter cold as welfare measures like the National Urban Livelihoods Mission (NULM) scheme continued to remain a distant dream.
At the time, the court had directed a Committee headed by a former Delhi High Court judge, Justice Kailash Gambhir, to be constituted to verify the availability of night shelters and whether their operations were in compliance with NULM guidelines.
Bhushan had submitted that the total capacity of shelter homes in Delhi was only around 17,000 persons and the DUSIB had demolished nine shelter homes. Kamat had responded that there were six temporary shelter homes which were destroyed due to floods in the River Yamuna in 2023 and it had been abandoned since June 2023.