Caring for the shelterless

We need a sympathetic and compassionate heart to consider all of them as our brothers and sisters and give them shelter, writes Father A.X.J. Bosco SJ

We talk of the right to food, education, work and health. We also have a right to shelter. A comfortable and convenient shelter is an absolute requirement of decent living, guaranteed in the charter of Human Rights by United Nations Organisation.

There are 60,000 people, including 20,000 women, who have no shelter in Hyderabad, the Andhra Pardesh capital, alone. They sleep on the platforms and available spaces on railway stations, bus stands, etc.

The Supreme Court has instructed that the cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad, which have a population of more than 60 lakh, should have at least 60 shelters for the homeless.

The Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad called for a meeting of NGO's only to show the apex court that they were doing their duty.

They promised us infrastructure facilities and amounts required and asked us only to take care of their breakfast, supper and discipline.

But later we found that the corporation gave practically nothing and the whole responsibility fell on us.

We, the religious of the social apostolate, decided to go ahead with the program and at the same time to keep the corporation involved to remind them of their responsibilities.

Some of the religious went around at night making a survey of the homeless and identified areas where people sleep on the pavements.

Further, when the sisters identified a community hall and wanted to make it a night shelter, though the corporation agreed, the local people were against the idea.

A group of us religious leaders met the Major Superiors individually and convinced them of the importance of this work. All of them agreed that we should be involved in providing shelter for the homeless.

Hopefully, we would be able to provide places of shelter inside or outside our institutions and hear the consoling words of the Lord, "I was homeless and you gave me shelter".

We have the goodwill. But goodwill alone is not enough, it is only a beginning. It has to fructify in concrete action. It is true that many obstacles and difficulties have to be faced.

There may be ruffians, sex-workers, pick-pockets and petty thieves; people with various sicknesses etc. among the shelterless. We need a sympathetic and compassionate heart to consider all of them as our brothers and sisters and give them shelter.

To provide shelters we need funds which we need to mobilize from our own resources. We need counselors who can listen and deal with the depressed people or those with mental illness. It is a very important mission for the poorest of the poor and we religious, cannot afford to neglect or bypass it.

The Major Superiors and the social activists need to convince the people in the schools, colleges, pastoral centres and other institutions to provide the needed space or structure for accommodation and for funds required.