CHENNAI: P Meena, in her mid-60s, was found lying on a footpath near Pursawalkam bus stand on a rainy night by a volunteer. She had been living there for the past month after her son and his wife forced her out after an argument.
“I was literally on the streets, there was absolutely no one to help,” she said. “I managed somehow in the first few days, but after it began raining, living on the streets became tough.” Luckily, her plight was cut short after a volunteer took her to a shelter in Kellys. She had to be treated for high fever and wheezing, but she is fine now.
This is not an isolated case. Many say that survival is tough, especially when it’s raining. “This year in particular has been the toughest,” said Shiva-shankaran, a homeless 70-year-old near the Ayanavaram bus stop. “Luckily I heard about this place through someone and came here; else my condition would have worsened. A home nearby would have been very helpful,” he said.
The Information and Resource Centre for the Deprived and Urban Communities revealed that there are 8,325 homeless people living in the city, of which 72 per cent had been living on the streets for over 30 years.