30 families camping on a footpath in Lyari for the past 20 years
Children guard the belongings in the day when elders leave for work to earn and ward off their only fear, ‘hunger’
These children, seated among blankets and other household goods are on guard, protecting their families’ belongings in the absence of elders, most of whom work all day long as daily wage labourers. PHOTO: EXPRESS
KARACHI:
In Lyari, one of Karachi's oldest neighbourhoods, stands a grubby wall, bearing a plaque announcing the establishment of a youth club last year, in 2018. The plaque may be taken as the only embellishment adding some colour to the otherwise insipid cement wall, which is the only vertical structure of the abode that houses at least 30 families under the open sky.
Forming the boundary of Government Girls Inter-Science, Arts and Commerce College in Moosa Lane and situated along the length of a footpath, on good days, it suffices to shelter them against sunlight, and on bad days it fails to protect them against rain and cold. Yet, for the past 20 years, the wall, along with the footpath it runs parallel to, has been a "second home" to the homeless families hailing from Khamiso Khaskehli village of taluka Soondho in Thatta District.
On any given day, passing by the wall, onlookers are presented with a dreary mural depicting shabbily-clothed children, either scampering and playing in its close vicinity or resting under its shadow, which gives them some respite from the scorching heat of the sun. At a glance, they may appear to be carefree and high-spirited, tumbling and scooting over blankets, disordered piles of dirty bedsheets, cardboards and other household items dumped in a cramped space. What many fail to notice is that they are actually on guard, protecting their families' belongings in the absence of elders, most of whom work all day long as daily wage labourers.
PM reiterates resolves to alleviate poverty
According to Karo Khaskheli, one of the persons residing on the footpath, at times, two to three elders who fail to find work on the day also stay back with the children to guard the belongings.
Though the belongings hold little monetary value, these are the only items that add some semblance of a house to the footpath - what these children believe to be their rightful place of residence.
The haunting reality of being homeless in Karachi dawns on them only when they grow past the age of 12 years and step out of the shelter of their roofless house for the very reason their forefathers had moved to Karachi many years back- earning a livelihood.
Life on a footpath
Since then, "It has been our second home," said Noor Muhammad Khaskheli, smiling while pointing at the footpath that stretches over approximately 100 metres. This is despite numerous difficulties that living on a footpath entails, such as complete lack of sanitary facilities. Consequently, they use toilets attached to a mosque in the area.
To add to it, there is little respite from harsh weather conditions.
"We have to run for safe shelter in case of heavy rains [and] winters as they bring adversity for our children," lamented Noor, however, adding that they never considered moving elsewhere or building a permanent home in the city, even when Lyari was considered a no-go-area some six years back.
This is because "we don't fear anything but hunger," said Noor with a smile.
And probably, it is for this reason that these families only occasionally visit their native village, which is located a few kilometers away from the Keenjhar Lake, one of the most-visited tourist sites in Sindh.
"It's mostly in case of emergencies, to attend marriage ceremonies or when we are broke," said Noor. In fact, the families work for extended periods in Karachi, save money and go back to the village for transitory periods, he explained, adding that they return when they run out of money.
No intrusion
Apart from the resilience and fearlessness of these homeless families, the area's residents and government agencies, such as the police, not asking them to leave the place also factors in their staying at one place for such a long period.
These homeless families revealed that the residents of the locality never disturbed them nor did the police ever ask them to move. This is despite the footpath being located opposite two police stations, Kalri Police Station and Baghdadi Police Station.
"They [police] are friendly with us and don't scare us as they know we work to earn a living, not beg or commit crimes," said Karo.
However, they faced some inconvenience when the Sindh government recently established a chest pain unit of the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases near the footpath, separating the families into two groups. But then, "It's [state's] property," said Noor, not complaining over the matter, failing to realise that it is the state's responsibility to provide shelter to every citizen in the first place.
Where is the government?
The provincial government, on the other hand, has not formulated any policy or initiated a scheme for homeless families.
According to Social Welfare Department Secretary Muhammad Nawaz Shaikh, there is no scheme for providing temporary homes or shelter to homeless families. While he admitted that "constitutionally, it's the state's responsibility to provide a home to every citizen," he clarified that is not the responsibility of his department to look after the homeless families.
He further said that in 2016, the government was directed by the apex court to take care of homeless people. A plan in this regard was prepared, but like most such plans, was never implemented.
‘Women empowerment to end poverty’
Later, when Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) came into power, it announced the 'Pannah Gah' scheme for people living on footpaths in major cities of the country. Following this, last year, on November 10, Prime Minister Imran Khan inaugurated a shelter project in Lahore and posted on his Twitter account that four more such shelter homes will be established in others cities across Pakistan.
Speaking on the issue, PTI MPA Haleem Adil Sheikh said the federal government is seriously looking into the matter. "We want to establish 'Panah Gahs' in Karachi [as well]," he said, adding, "I can't tell you when we'll establish these but I assure you that the federal government is aware of the difficulties faced by the homeless." Sheikh said that the PTI government also plans to start 'Langar Khanas' in different cities, including Tharparkar, to cater to the "basic problems of the poor in Sindh, which are food and shelter."
And until these 'Panah Gahs' and 'Langar Khanas' take shape, people battling homelessness will continue to struggle to find a place for themselves in scarce shelter homes for children or Darul Amans for women , and if not lucky enough, they will be left out in the cold.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 28th, 2019.
In Lyari, one of Karachi's oldest neighbourhoods, stands a grubby wall, bearing a plaque announcing the establishment of a youth club last year, in 2018. The plaque may be taken as the only embellishment adding some colour to the otherwise insipid cement wall, which is the only vertical structure of the abode that houses at least 30 families under the open sky.
Forming the boundary of Government Girls Inter-Science, Arts and Commerce College in Moosa Lane and situated along the length of a footpath, on good days, it suffices to shelter them against sunlight, and on bad days it fails to protect them against rain and cold. Yet, for the past 20 years, the wall, along with the footpath it runs parallel to, has been a "second home" to the homeless families hailing from Khamiso Khaskehli village of taluka Soondho in Thatta District.
On any given day, passing by the wall, onlookers are presented with a dreary mural depicting shabbily-clothed children, either scampering and playing in its close vicinity or resting under its shadow, which gives them some respite from the scorching heat of the sun. At a glance, they may appear to be carefree and high-spirited, tumbling and scooting over blankets, disordered piles of dirty bedsheets, cardboards and other household items dumped in a cramped space. What many fail to notice is that they are actually on guard, protecting their families' belongings in the absence of elders, most of whom work all day long as daily wage labourers.
PM reiterates resolves to alleviate poverty
According to Karo Khaskheli, one of the persons residing on the footpath, at times, two to three elders who fail to find work on the day also stay back with the children to guard the belongings.
Though the belongings hold little monetary value, these are the only items that add some semblance of a house to the footpath - what these children believe to be their rightful place of residence.
The haunting reality of being homeless in Karachi dawns on them only when they grow past the age of 12 years and step out of the shelter of their roofless house for the very reason their forefathers had moved to Karachi many years back- earning a livelihood.
Life on a footpath
Since then, "It has been our second home," said Noor Muhammad Khaskheli, smiling while pointing at the footpath that stretches over approximately 100 metres. This is despite numerous difficulties that living on a footpath entails, such as complete lack of sanitary facilities. Consequently, they use toilets attached to a mosque in the area.
To add to it, there is little respite from harsh weather conditions.
"We have to run for safe shelter in case of heavy rains [and] winters as they bring adversity for our children," lamented Noor, however, adding that they never considered moving elsewhere or building a permanent home in the city, even when Lyari was considered a no-go-area some six years back.
This is because "we don't fear anything but hunger," said Noor with a smile.
And probably, it is for this reason that these families only occasionally visit their native village, which is located a few kilometers away from the Keenjhar Lake, one of the most-visited tourist sites in Sindh.
"It's mostly in case of emergencies, to attend marriage ceremonies or when we are broke," said Noor. In fact, the families work for extended periods in Karachi, save money and go back to the village for transitory periods, he explained, adding that they return when they run out of money.
No intrusion
Apart from the resilience and fearlessness of these homeless families, the area's residents and government agencies, such as the police, not asking them to leave the place also factors in their staying at one place for such a long period.
These homeless families revealed that the residents of the locality never disturbed them nor did the police ever ask them to move. This is despite the footpath being located opposite two police stations, Kalri Police Station and Baghdadi Police Station.
"They [police] are friendly with us and don't scare us as they know we work to earn a living, not beg or commit crimes," said Karo.
However, they faced some inconvenience when the Sindh government recently established a chest pain unit of the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases near the footpath, separating the families into two groups. But then, "It's [state's] property," said Noor, not complaining over the matter, failing to realise that it is the state's responsibility to provide shelter to every citizen in the first place.
Where is the government?
The provincial government, on the other hand, has not formulated any policy or initiated a scheme for homeless families.
According to Social Welfare Department Secretary Muhammad Nawaz Shaikh, there is no scheme for providing temporary homes or shelter to homeless families. While he admitted that "constitutionally, it's the state's responsibility to provide a home to every citizen," he clarified that is not the responsibility of his department to look after the homeless families.
He further said that in 2016, the government was directed by the apex court to take care of homeless people. A plan in this regard was prepared, but like most such plans, was never implemented.
‘Women empowerment to end poverty’
Later, when Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) came into power, it announced the 'Pannah Gah' scheme for people living on footpaths in major cities of the country. Following this, last year, on November 10, Prime Minister Imran Khan inaugurated a shelter project in Lahore and posted on his Twitter account that four more such shelter homes will be established in others cities across Pakistan.
Speaking on the issue, PTI MPA Haleem Adil Sheikh said the federal government is seriously looking into the matter. "We want to establish 'Panah Gahs' in Karachi [as well]," he said, adding, "I can't tell you when we'll establish these but I assure you that the federal government is aware of the difficulties faced by the homeless." Sheikh said that the PTI government also plans to start 'Langar Khanas' in different cities, including Tharparkar, to cater to the "basic problems of the poor in Sindh, which are food and shelter."
And until these 'Panah Gahs' and 'Langar Khanas' take shape, people battling homelessness will continue to struggle to find a place for themselves in scarce shelter homes for children or Darul Amans for women , and if not lucky enough, they will be left out in the cold.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 28th, 2019.