New Delhi, Apr 16 (PTI) Almost half of the 370 impoverished families residing in the Madrasi Camp, their home for decades in south Delhi’s Jangpura, face an uncertain future after they were found ineligible for government-allotted flats in Narela, the northern part of the city.

With the residents of the colony mostly working as daily wagers and domestic helps, even the families who are eligible for the flats, fear loss of livelihood and their children losing out on education.

“I wash utensils and do odd jobs so that I can send my daughter to school and give her a better future. But now we are being told to vacate our home and move to an unknown place,” said Sangeetha, a resident of the colony.

The domestic help, in her 30s, is among the many residents of Madrasi Camp who now feel abandoned. “Everyone comes to us during elections, but once they get the votes, they don’t look back,” said one.

On September 8, 2024, the Public Works Department served an eviction notice to the residents of the colony near the Old Barapullah Bridge area to make way for the construction of a new flyover. However, the Delhi High Court, on September 11, issued a temporary stay order.

In November of that year, the government conducted a survey to identify the eligible and ineligible residents and later that month served a notice along with a published list of families eligible for relocation to Narela.

On April 12, a list of families eligible for government-allotted flats was pasted on the camp’s walls. Out of around 370 families, only 189 were found eligible. The rest have been left out without housing, support, or any clarity on what comes next.

Murugan, 60, recalled that his father came to Delhi before he was born. “Back then, there wasn’t much food, but we worked hard and built a life here,” he said.

“Now, with this sudden shift, our children’s education will be interrupted. If that happens, they might lose their way,” he added.

A major concern among the residents is the impact their relocation might have on their children’s studies.

Many of their children attend a Delhi Tamil Education Association (DTEA) school just three kilometres away, where Tamil is taught alongside Hindi and English.

According to a local, the school charges and annual fee ranging between Rs 8,000 and Rs 9,000, making it affordable for the colony resident, most of whom are daily wage earners or domestic helps.

Suryakantham, who arrived in Delhi as a newly married at the age of 18, stood outside her jhuggi with a blank look in her eyes. This is the home where she raised her four children and now, in her 60s, watches over her grandchildren.

“I did not vote in 2015 (Delhi elections) because I was ill and had gone to my village. Now, they (officials) are saying that I am not eligible to stay in the place I have spent my whole life,” she said.

“We don’t want to move. But what choice do we have if we are told to leave?” asked another resident. “If getting a new house is uncertain, being removed from here altogether is worse,” he told PTI.

Mala, also in her 60s, echoed similar worries. “I opened a bank account in 2015 but never used it. It got closed, and now they say my relocation has been cancelled. I have been here for more than 50 years. Where should I go now?” she posed, visibly distressed.

The homes in Madrasi Camp are modest — built with broken bricks with the paint on walls worn out. But they tell tales of years of struggle, memories and hope. Now, that sense of stability is slipping away.

Shiva, another resident, said they are even being blamed for poor infrastructure.

“Where will we go? We cannot afford rent. We earn Rs 10,000-15,000 a month and have to feed our children and pay school fees. If we move, we will be worse off,” he said.

He added that there is no employment in Narela and no Tamil school. If they shift their children’s education and future will be ruined. PTI SHB SHB NSD NSD