The unprecedented impact of COVID- 19 on public health and the society worldwide, led on to the lockdown initially in Bhilwara, Rajasthan, on 21st of March, 2020.Ultimately, on March 22nd, 2020, on the call of Prime Minister of India underwent a self-imposed – Janata curfew, as a test of remedy & preparedness. Later on, the official countrywide lockdown was imposed from March 25, 2020 and has been continuing state lockdown till date with few restrictions. Homelessness, a typical example of ‘social exclusion’, is neither new nor rare across the world. The homeless are perhaps the most invisible section of society, with its ‘symptoms’ appearing as vagrants, vagabonds, tramps, beggars, bums, mendicants, idlers, indigents, itinerants and the underclass. All these symptoms are interrelated with social issues that create the gap between homeless people and the rest of society. Homelessness is a potent and evocative social issue that has become emblematic of social inequality and injustice in otherwise affluent societies. Although problems associated with homelessness can be discussed in various spheres, social questions arise such as why homeless people ‘lack ambition’, why they are socially maladapted, why they are ignored by the larger part of society and why they are considered to be a group lying somewhere outside the social system.

In this research article, I have tried to cover different aspects of homelessness in India and across the globe and how COVID-19 affects the humans’ lifestyle which only increased the rate of homeless people around us. I have done it with the help of secondary research method. Collectively, I have tried to gathered data from sources including internet, journals, blogs and articles. Qualitative research based on primary data collected from different survey by using an online platform.

Literature Review

What Is Homelessness: Shelter- the major necessity a human being needs? This is also a luxury for 1.8 crore (approx) people in India. Homelessness has grown rapidly in advanced industrial nations over the past two decades. They generally live in any vacant space i.e., roadsides, pavements, as temporary abode. While, attributing to their condition to extreme neediness, unavailability of low cost housing, unstable employment and violence at home. There is disagreement whether people living temporarily with friends or family should be counted as homeless and over how to define the “near homeless”. In the urban setting, 9 lakh people are homeless and 8 crore people are homeless in rural areas. The metropolis cities - Mumbai, New Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai- are home to 3 lakhs homeless. The biggest of cities are unable to furnish the need of housing them. Population increases due to urbanization (Figure 1).

Figure 1: The Impact of COVID-19 on Homelessness

Source: https://unitedwaynca.org/stories/effect-pandemic-homeless-us/

Homelessness is more than ‘rootlessness’. A home is not just a physical space; it also has a legal and social dimension. A home provides roots, identity and a sense of belonging and a place of emotional wellbeing. Homelessness is about the loss of all of these. It is an isolating and destructive experience and homeless people are some of the most vulnerable and socially excluded in our society. The two main causes of homelessness are poverty and failure of the housing supply system. The other causes are domestic violence, the erosion of family and social support, political, ethnic and social turmoil, natural disaster, physical and mental illness, the deinstitutionalizing of the patients with mental problems and disability. Hence, homeless persons are heterogeneous in terms of their age-group, gender, livelihoods, place of origin and the reasons for living in the street.

Homelessness in India: A Cause for Concern During Covid Times

The lockdown has already disproportionately hurt marginalized communities due to loss of livelihood and lack of food, shelter, health and other basic needs. The government does have a responsibility to protect the health and well-being of the population, but some of these steps have left tens of thousands of migrant workers stranded, with rail and bus services shut down. The blanket closing of state borders has caused disruption in the supply of essential goods, leading to inflation and fear of shortages. Thousands of homeless people are in need of protection. Police actions to punish those violating orders have reportedly resulted in abuses against people in need. 26, the central government announced a relief package of 1.7 trillion to provide free food and cash transfers to the poor and vulnerable populations and health insurance for healthcare workers, among other things. The government should ensure that those at heightened risk, including sanitation workers (safai karmacharis), community health staff (ASHA workers), early childhood caregivers (anganwadi workers) and people such as midday meal workers – often poorly paid public service officials – who are at the front lines during this crisis, are provided protective equipment, medical benefits and timely wages. 

With more than 80 percent of Indian’s workforce employed in the informal sector and one-third working as casual labors, it is crucial that the authorities make use of maximum available resources to ensure the delivery of services.

Distribution of Homeless Population Across the States Before Covid Times

Using the census data, it is possible to map the regional variation in the homeless population. Data revealed that homelessness is uneven across the states of India. The proportion of homeless population to the total population in India as well as across the states followed a broad geographic pattern (Figure 2). More than half of the homeless population resides in only five of the most populous states: Uttar Pradesh followed by Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh. It is also interesting to observe that in hilly states less than 1 per cent of the total population is homeless. Further, except NCT of Delhi, all Union Territories have less than 1 per cent of the homeless population.

Figure 2: Living Conditions of Homeless People in India

Tens of thousands are calling help lines daily while thousands are going to bed hungry as the country shuts down to battle the pandemic. With 472 million children, India has the largest child population in the world and campaigners say the lockdown has impacted around 40 million children from poor families. These include those working in farms and fields in rural areas, as well as children who work as rag pickers in cities or sell balloons, pens and other knick-knacks at traffic lights.

(Figure 3) Percentage share of homeless population among states/UTs, India, 2011. Source: Primary Census Abstract for Total Population and Houseless Population, 2011, Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. 

Figure 3: Proportion of Homeless Population by State in India

States/UTs having percentage share below 1 per cent have been grouped under “Other States/UTs”–Assam, Uttarakhand, Kerala, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Tripura, Manipur, Goa, Arunachal Pradesh, Pondicherry, Meghalaya, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Nagaland, Daman & Diu, Sikkim, Mizoram, Andaman & Nicobar Islands

State-Wise Distribution of Houseless Population by Rural and Urban Areas

From the state-wise distribution of the houseless population (Table 1), it is found that generally the bigger states (Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh) have greater number of houseless population in comparison to other states. In majority of the Indian states the number of houseless population has declined. This decrease is significantly noticed in Maharashtra, Gujarat and the southern states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh and in the north eastern states. The states which have registered a significant increase in houseless population include Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan West Bengal and Delhi. Whereas in Uttar Pradesh, both in rural and urban areas the houseless population increased. In Delhi, the number increased in urban areas but has declined in the rural areas. In Rajasthan, houseless population has increased in both rural and urban areas, while in West Bengal the number of houseless population decreased in urban areas but increased in rural areas. In India, about 32 per cent of the populations live in urban areas of which 26 percent live below official poverty line and 40 per cent do not have proper housing.

Estimated Number of Homeless People in Different Cities across India [1]:

• Delhi: 150,000 - 200,000

• Chennai: 40,000 - 50,000

• Mumbai: 200,000 (including Navi Mumbai)

• Indore: 10,000 - 12,000

• Vishakhapatnam: 18,000

• Bangalore: 40,000 - 50,000

• Hyderabad: 60,000

• Ahmadabad: 100,000

• Patna: 25,000

• Kolkata: 150,000

• Lucknow: 19,000

The Impact of Covid-19 On India’s Migrant Workers

The genesis and evolution of the COVID-19-led migrant crisis in India, along with the institutional responses, is discussed. The focus is on the shortcomings of the response, especially taking into consideration the curtailment of human mobility, which pushed migrants into enormous physical, psychological and economic vulnerability and the short-, medium- and long-term measures provided by the government in order to alleviate them.

Table 1: State-wise Distribution of Homeless Population in India (2001 and 2011 Census)

Source: Based on data available from Census of India 2001 and 2011

Alternate policy measures to ensure migrant welfare in the immediate future are suggested.

The unfolding corona virus pandemic is very much a global issue, with nearly every country in the world impacted. However, the impact is affecting individual countries in profoundly different ways. As lockdowns around the world increase unemployment, many vulnerable workers will be pushed into more precarious situations and lack protection. Shortage of labor is likely in those sectors, increasing the possibility of exploitation the remaining workers and how this will impact internal migrants in the coming months. Once the pandemic has been managed to a point that sites are safe to return to for work, migrant workers may be taken advantage of and are likely to accept any type of work so they and their families have means of income.

Due to the precarious nature of labor jobs in India, many daily laborers, who are often migrants, lost their livelihood due to lockdown. This has created issues including starvation, separation from family and no alternative forms of employment [2]. The inter-state migrant workforce represents the lowest paying and most insecure jobs, in key sectors such as construction, hospitality, textiles, manufacturing, transportation, services and domestic work [3].

State-Wise Movement of Migrant Workers During Pandemic in Big Cities

With India reporting a record-breaking surge in corona virus cases, the country is witnessing yet another nationwide migrant exodus, as states begin imposing curfews and lockdowns to contain the spread of the deadly infection. In scenes reminiscent of the first wave of the corona virus pandemic in India, thousands of workers are leaving for their hometowns and villages, fearing that they will lose their housing and livelihood if they remain in big cities.

Delhi 

Amidst a debilitating surge in corona virus cases in the National Capital, thousands of migrants are rushing to bus depots and railway stations in search of a way out of the city. Many are pointing fingers at the government, accusing Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal of not doing enough to protect their livelihood. “How will we survive here if there’s a longer lockdown,” said Pinki, who works as a laborer at a printing press in Delhi. “Every time I see an election poster, I feel cheated. Nobody has helped us.” Predicting an increase in traffic at major inter-state bus terminals and railway stations owing to rumors about a lockdown. The Special Branch has also directed district police to intensify patrolling at night. Meanwhile, an overcrowded bus ferrying laborers from Delhi to Tikamgarh in Madhya Pradesh overturned at Jhorasi ghati in Gwalior district, killing three people in the process.

Andhra Pradesh

Free lunches, accommodation, face masks and sanitizers these are some of the measures rice mill owners in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh are promising to dissuade their workers from leaving this time amid fears of another lockdown due to the mounting COVID cases. In neighboring Andhra Pradesh, which has around 3,000 rice mills, owners are providing free rice and vegetables to their workers in an attempt to lure them away from leaving.

Gujarat

Soon after the traders’ association announced a 10-day voluntary lockdown in the Valsad district, a huge rush of migrant workers was seen at Vapi railway station throughout Tuesday. As the news of the voluntary lockdown spread through social media, migrant workers employed in the factories of Vapi Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) and Sarigam GIDC started leaving the city fearing larger restrictions were imminent. Many said they feared the lockdown might spell a loss of livelihood for migrant laborers like last year despite the industrial units in the GIDC estates remaining operational.

Uttar Pradesh

In Uttar Pradesh, where weekend curfew will be imposed in districts with over 2,000 active COVID cases, the Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath-led government has directed officials of districts bordering other states to exercise special caution and make arrangements for migrant workers returning from Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Delhi. The Home Department and the Transport Department should coordinate and act; he said and directed officials to ensure treatment and testing of the people returning from other states.

Objectives to Create Awareness Among Migrant Workers

• Raising awareness and developing understanding about migration issues so as to build a society where services are knowledgeable and able to meet the needs of migrants

• Providing support for migrants to ensure the defense of their rights, especially for the most vulnerable

• Reducing the effects of poverty, deprivation and social exclusion among vulnerable migrants by supporting provision and access to humanitarian aid

Relief Measures Distributed in Between Homeless Population Across the States During Covid Times

Homeless Shelters Duringthe Pandemic: During a pandemic, shelters are necessary to allow people without homes access to necessary sanitation, adequate water for drinking and hygiene purposes and to follow the ‘stay at home’ lockdown guidelines to reduce the spread of the infection. Many homeless women in India are exposed to physical and sexual violence, rape and trafficking in non-pandemic times and face further obstacles to safety due to the COVID-19 restrictions. For example, social distancing is particularly difficult for these women to follow as they often find safety in numbers. In addition, entry to shelters is being denied to avoid overcrowding and reduce COVID-19 transmission, while police are evicting homeless people from the streets. Recently, around 400 homeless people were locked inside a night shelter with the police threatening to use force if they ventured outside. During this incident, at least three pregnant women were starved for three days before receiving food rations. Such maltreatment violates fundamental human rights and the lack of essential medical services, water and food during lockdown increases the risk of death or disability of these individuals. Now more than ever, the Indian government must act to protect its homeless citizens.

Not Enough Shelters and Poor Conditions

The Indo Global Social Service Society (IGSSS) has highlighted the dismal situation for homeless individuals during lockdown. The latest IGSSS study found that in over 83% of the 28 Indian states there is a lack of sanitation, electronic payment systems for cash transfers, health facilities, awareness of precautions to prevent virus transmission and shelter provisions (Table 2). The IGSSS also reported a lack of emergency food provision in 31% of the states 7. Life in existing shelters may be no better with conditions being reported as ‘subhuman, barely better than being on the streets’. There have been multiple complaints by shelter residents of a ‘lack of water, medical facilities, insufficient or inadequate toilets and filthy, unwashed beddings’. In addition to poor living conditions, the government was criticized in 2015 by the Supreme Court for underutilizing funds meant for constructing shelters. In 2013, the central government had provided a total of $163 million to construct shelters for 900,000 urban homeless, yet only 208 houses with a capacity of 50-100 residents each were built. The state of Maharashtra was allotted $26 million from the central funds, but did not construct a single shelter home. The following year, 770 shelters across India with a combined capacity of only 38,770 were sanctioned. At best, these shelters would provide housing for a meagre, 2% of India’s homeless population. The survival of homeless Indians during and after the pandemic remains uncertain. The government appears to have abandoned its duty towards its homeless citizens through the lack of construction of appropriate shelters during this public health crisis.

Problems and Consequences of Being Homeless During Covid Times

There are various dimensions of problems related to homelessness. These include material conditions and standards, privacy, space, control, personal warmth, comfort, stability, safety, security, choice, self-expression and physical and emotional wellbeing. Homelessness has predominantly adverse effects on certain vulnerable groups like women, children and the disabled. They have missed their respective opportunities in several ways. Children have missed the opportunity of education and health that causes illiteracy, low birth weight and malnourishment. Women have missed the opportunity for self-respect, privacy, security and emotional love. Disabled and elderly people have missed their opportunities in terms of health rights and social dignity. Youth and adults are vulnerable to risky and harmful addiction. Most of the literature focuses on health and well-being issues of being homeless. Apart from the direct health impacts of homelessness, such as those resulting from exposure to the elements (e.g. respiratory infections, hypothermia, skin diseases), both direct and indirect consequences of substance abuse are common in this population. Direct consequences include liver disease associated with excessive alcohol consumption and the toxic effects of various narcotics. Indirect effects are less well known, but include risky sexual behavior–multiple partners, prostitution and sexual abuse (affecting women and youth disproportionately)–which is likely to result in a high prevalence of Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) and HIV in the homeless population [4]. Alcohol and drug abuse are also strongly correlated with violence and unintentional injury, which can be another feature of the lives of homeless people [5]. These problems worsen when the homeless suffer from unemployment and difficult economic situations. Snow and Anderson hypothesized that many individuals turn to shadow work as their duration of homelessness increase. Shadow work comprises resource-generating efforts outside the formal economy, including scavenging, panhandling, recycling, bartering, street vending, plasma Singh et al.189donation and illegal acts such as theft, prostitution and drug sales [6]. Therefore, homelessness is a complex issue associated with several problems such as physical, mental, psychological, social and economic as well as health-related problems. When a person becomes homeless, even briefly, the impacts can be complex and long-lasting. The results of vagrancy are often shocking, disturbing and greatly affect their wellbeing and relations, subsequently resulting in reduced opportunities and an amplified probability of social exclusion [7,8]. Many homeless young people become exposed to a number of factors that have detrimental effects on them, such as drug use, inadequate nutrition, limited access to medical care, very limited social support, repeated abuse and violence, unsafe sexual practices and inadequate or unsafe shelters [9]. 

Table 2: Relief Measures Announced by Indian States for Homeless People Amid COVID-19

Source: https://static.wixstatic.com/media/4c7c0a_ed15ea1effb04949 a8fff0dde6416839~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_1110,h_1282,al_c,q_95/4c7c0a_ed15ea1effb04949a8fff0dde6416839~mv2.webp

Findings

• Individuals experiencing homelessness are at increased risk of infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome corona virus owing to their lack of safe housing and are also at higher risk of severe corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19), given the high prevalence of risk factors in homeless populations

• People experiencing homelessness often find it difficult to adhere to public health directives such as physical distancing, isolation and quarantine because of shelter conditions and other challenges

• Several cities and regions have taken measures to provide spaces for people experiencing homelessness, to ensure physical distancing, isolation or quarantine; however, service providers must focus on building relationships and rapport and take a trauma-informed approach to care, to persuade individuals to follow advice

• Closure of regular services may put people experiencing homelessness at risk of other harms, such as those related to unsafe substance use and intimate partner violence

• The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of housing as a social determinant of health and raises the question of whether current approaches to addressing homelessness should be re-evaluated

Why are the homeless ignored by all sections of the government? The reason is their invisibility, say experts. “COVID-19 has exacerbated the vulnerabilities of the urban homeless communities and there has been no specific intervention for the urban homeless because of their invisibility,” said Vanessa Peter, a housing rights activist from Chennai who works with the Information and Resource Centre for the Deprived Urban Communities. “Inadequate information about the homeless population and its multi-dimensional socio-economic vulnerabilities is also a contributing factor.”

What kind of strategies can help the homeless deal with the crisis being created by the pandemic and the lockdown? IGSSS spoke to activists and scholars from organizations that deal with employment, human settlement and marginalized communities to come up with specific recommendations for the short, medium and long term.

Some Immediate Measures That Can Be Taken Are

• Universal Provision of Nutritional Cooked Food for Six Months: Many shelters do not have cooking facilities or have limited capacity during the lockdown. Additional feeding centers should be set up near shelters and food delivery should go beyond known clusters and shelters

• Universal Provision of PDS, With Dry Ration for Six Months: Some states have notified the provision of food to daily-wage earners. In some cases, the homeless have to travel far to access the food and are not allowed by the police. Those who choose to cook should be given dry rations

• Revise the Circulars for Clarity On Sanitation Facilities: States talk of sanitation facilities for shelters but offer no clarity on who will be responsible for cleaning, washing etc. At the very least, masks, soaps and sanitizers should be provided to everyone

• Provision of Quarantine, Regular Medical Checks at Shelters and Hotspots: Some homeless with COVID-19 symptoms have been quarantined on the streets. They should be shifted to government quarantine centers and equipped with facilities, as per the Indian Council of Medical Research guidelines. Currently, the state’s only mention providing medical kits

• Provision of Temporary Shelters: It is critical that numerous homeless shelters of temporary nature are set up to accommodate the homeless living in crowded shelters

• Provision of Water, Basic Services: There are reports of the homeless living in the open having to pay toilet access charges. At many communities and clusters, water is not provided. Access to public toilets should be made free and water provided

Medium-Term Measures-Over The Next Two Months

• Provision of Adequate Shelters: Shelters should be provided for the homeless as per National Urban Livelihood Mission (NULM) guidelines. The distance between the beds should allow social distancing. States should also pass orders to identify new shelters

• Provision of Immediate Psycho-Social Counseling support: The homeless have always been victims of violence and harassment. The pandemic would impact them even more acutely. States should offer them psycho-social counseling support

• Specific Focus On Homeless Families and Women: Homeless women and children are highly vulnerable groups. Children should be provided nutritious food and women connected with police help lines and the women and children welfare department

• Address Livelihood Restoration, Financial Assistance: Non-payment of wages and the collapse of the informal economy severely affected homeless wage earners. They should be included in safety nets, provided financial aid, especially those with special needs such as women with dependent children, the elderly etc. Shelters can be turned into self-help groups and training initiated

Long-Term Measures–Over Next Six Months

• Formulate Policy for Homelessness: The Ministry of Urban and Housing Affairs, should work on a draft policy like Rajasthan. This can be further linked to housing and other urban development schemes

• Allocation of More Resources, Development of an Action Plan Under NULM: Increased allocation of resources will help set up more shelters and further the livelihood/training that the NULM Shelter for Urban Homeless (SUH) should pursue. Also use this as an opportunity to re-think NULM SUH guidelines to include disasters

• Review State, National Disaster Management Plans: Include homelessness in disaster management practices, laws and guidelines and ensure standard operating procedures on handling the crisis of the homelessness during disasters

Homelessness in India is an economic and socio-political problem. Though in last one decade the number of houseless population has started to decline, the presence of a large number of slum population, those living in substandard dwellings and those ‘living rough’ on the pavements have been a source of constant worry. After studying the conditions of these poor homeless populations, mainly those struggling for a space of their own and a roof over their head, one thing emerges, that there is the lack of concern of the State towards accommodating the poor in the city or in the villages where they are entitled to minimally decent housing and other opportunities. The view by the government that homeless people are ‘encroachers’ rather than people with a right to safe and adequate housing has corroded their fundamental human rights and exacerbated the housing crisis in India. The pandemic merely serves as a magnifier of pre-existing housing problems. Disregarding such problems severely threatens the survival of homeless individuals during the pandemic. The Indian government must adhere to its international human rights obligations and domestic judicial rulings and recommendations.

This paper provides the insight into the contemporary migrant crisis caused by the COVID19, by examining the status of internal migrant laborers. Any effective solution to the current migrant crisis requires accurate data on internal migrants that will provide visibility to invisible but broad categories of workers. 

Many expatriates are deprived of various government schemes due to their 'neither here nor there' a situation. This should be done in alignment with the effect interval analysis of such schemes. It is also necessary to create migrant collectives for the better voice and a political agency of migrants.

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3. Haley, M. et al. “Risk Behaviours and Prevalence of Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae Genital Infections among Montreal Street Youth.” International Journal of STD and AIDS, vol. 13, no. 4, 2002, pp. 238–245.

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