Aman Biradari
Delhi Winter Campaign for the Homeless
Every winter, homeless children, women and men battle for their lives in the bitter night cold, and many die lonely deaths each year.
For many years, caring young staff and volunteers of Aman Biradari and Koshish have attempted to reach out support for dignified survival to homeless people, for whom Delhi’s fierce winter threatens those with no roof over their heads every year. Each year, we learn from the last, and try to improve our out-reach interventions for egalitarian caring.
Planned interventions this winter
- Aman Homeless Winter Support Centres:
Blanket Distribution, Community Kitchens and Health Centres
1. We observed in past years that a big limitation of the program to distribute blankets is that homeless people have no place where they can store this the next morning, and the blanket at best serves them a single night. We experimented last winter with 2 fixed distribution points, where staff and volunteers will distribute blankets and mats free every night, and collect these again the next morning, and store it at a room nearby. We propose to continue with the blanket distribution sites in homeless concentration locations of Hazrat Nizamuddin and Jama Masjid.
2. Homeless people die in winter not just because they are homeless, but also often because they are poorly nourished. Research has established that people exposed to extreme cold need more calories simply to maintain their body temperature. Therefore we resolved this year to serve a hot cooked meal in the night at each of these fixed sites. Here a hot nutritious meal would go a long way in ensuring body warmth, and this coupled with blankets could effectively combat the winter deaths. Hence we propose that at the fixed distribution sites, we will also distribute a free hot cooked meal each night to the homeless from the blanket distribution site itself.
3. At these locations we will also store medicines and provide basic first aid if so required.
In summary, we will establish for the high-density homeless concentration areas of Hazrat Nizamuddin and Jama Masjid, we will establish 2 Aman Homeless Winter Support Centres, in which staff and volunteers will provide the following services:
Ø Blankets and mattresses every night
Ø Hot cooked nutritious meals
Ø Primary Health and Referral Services
2. Mobile Blanket Distribution and Health Rescue Services:
There are some scattered single homeless persons, who are the most vulnerable (including those who are mentally ill). They cannot be reached by the fixed blanket distribution points. For them, we will start 2 mobile units. In these equipped vehicles, teams of 3 or 4 volunteers plus one staff member will travel around the city through each night, and distribute sheet and warm cover to all in need. Dr Amod Kumar and others have found that the best alternative is bubble plastic sheets, both for base and cover. These are very warm because they keep out the damp and cold, and are cheap and light. It is especially valuable as homeless people can carry these around easily during the daytime. The mobile units will also provide basic first aid if so required and also carry out rescue operations which includes taking the needy to hospitals and homeless shelters as the situation demands.
Implementation Plan
· We will start the interventions from the 14th of December 2011 through till 28th of February 2012
· For this purpose we will hire a space on rent at both the locations, or establish these in tented structures, where the blankets (both for fixed units and mobile units) will be stored, decontaminated, re-packaged and food will also be prepared. In addition the location will also maintain a stock of commonly used medicines for first aid. We will term these spaces as “Resource Points 1 & 2”
· The two mobile units will be allocated apiece to one or the other fixed point and the fixed points will act as their starting point as well as a focal point for meeting of volunteers, staff and other support personnel.
· The “Resource points 1 & 2” will be manned by 2 personnel who are envisaged to be from the community itself and will be paid a stipend for the duration of the campaign. They will be working full time at the resource points. The resource persons at the two points will work in tandem to undertake the following functions:
o Cook food for the warm food distribution in the evening
o Store blankets for the fixed as well as mobile units
o Issue blankets to the homeless during the night
o Recollect the blankets in the morning
o De-contaminate and repackage the returned blankets
o Stock the mobile units with blankets, bubble wraps and medicines
o Provide first aid and basic medical assistance wherever required
· Each team i.e. mobile or fixed will have a health worker at all times to provide basic medical assistance
· The fixed points will distribute blankets and food from 7 p.m. to about 11 p.m. and collect the same between 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. in the morning.
· The mobile units will operate daily between 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. in the night
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