Palani Amma aged 35 is a mother of 5 who was a resident of
the EWS Slum for the past 20 years. With Her husband who passed away 7 years
ago, she came to Bangalore in search of job and livelihood all the way from
Thirvanamalai, a village in Tamil Nadu. Doing odd jobs to survive the family,
they both worked hard to meet basic necessities and ends. Tragedy struck their
family in 2006 when her Husband died of cancer, leaving her and their 5
children to face the world on their own.
Palani Amma and her family then occupied one of the quarters
before it collapsed and after which they were shifted to the tin sheds which
were constructed to house the residents of the EWS Slum - allocated or rent.
Life goes on and she worked as a domestic servant with which she managed to send
two of her children to school; Chitra (12) to St. Patricks School and the
younger boy Praveen (7) to a play school nearby the slum. Though they were
poor, they could manage to survive sharing the little they had. This was their
life story until the morning of 18th January 2013. The morning they will
remember for the rest of their life or at least for a very long time.
There was utter confusion prevailing in the slum that
morning. Bulldozers and JCBs hired by the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike
(BBMP) started pulling down the houses one after another with police in tow.
The 15 acres and 22 gunta on which the shantytown was located is now slated for
the construction of a mall and higher quality quarters for the original
residents. This in fact was a joint development agreement of the BBMP and
Maverick Holdings and Investments Pvt.
Ltd. 1512 families had to pay the price.
Not able to go for work anymore, Palani Amma now reside on
the roadside pavement beside the fence that are put up around the area that
used to be their colony, though not officially. She dare not leave her
belongings unguarded as thieves and maniacs would take off with whatever they
can possibly grab. If it was not for hope, the condition she and her families
are in along with a few more families who still reside along the pavement of
the EWS Slum is not something that is easy for a human to go through. Though
they do not have any future to look forward to, the belief that someday things
would change keep them alive.
Notice by the BBMP stating that they are supposed to leave
the slum was put forward to the slum residents 6 months before the demolishing
process started. Also they received a sum amount of Rupees 10,000 as
compensation. But reality doesn't permit the family to vacate the house and
shift. They decided to stay along with the other families of the area.
Anjali aged 22, sister of Palani Amma who used to stay with
them was unwilling to settle on pavements that she decided to leave her family
and move out on her own will along with her friends to a location undisclosed.
True, the condition in which the family is living lacks the smallest degree of
sanitation and hygiene. Mosquitos wouldn't allow them to sleep at night, Stray
dogs would howl beside their makeshift shed, Traffic honks all through the
night, drunken local villains disrupt the peaceful night, and the police
themselves would chase them away if they sleep in the drain barrels that are
kept on the side of the road. A situation where any person would at one point
curse the day he or she was born. Neither is there anything they could possibly
do about it.
She desolately recollects the accounts of that faithful
morning when her little house was pulled down in front of her eyes. With gloomy
face she speaks about the events that happened. Women were beaten as they cry
and shout with despair. With the little belongings they could manage to grab,
they ran helter skelter around the area hoping the gruesome act would stop.
Half of the residents left the slum area a few days after the demolition. But
the rest stayed back not because they don't want to leave, but because they
have no place to go. With no rice, vessels and water, let alone money, even
after almost two months since the tragic event happened, they are still
dependant on sponsors and donations from well-wishers to supply them food to
eat and water to drink.
Searching new jobs for them is easier said than done. People
would not hire them as they belong to the evicted slum area. With no jobs, they
do not have any source of income, and with her children growing up on the
pavement she felt the agony hurting too much she shed a tear. They spend their
days watching the traffic pass by as they are without any job or work. The
families who still reside along the pavement of that area are supportive
towards each other and they share and help in whichever ways they can.
Also Palani Amma’s daughter Jyoti , aged 17 is currently 8
months pregnant. Her husband beats the drum during funeral processions. Although she goes for regular check-ups at
the government hospital in Austin Town, she has to pay every time she visits
the hospital which is supposed to be free. When asked what she fears most about
being a mother, she puts her head down and said she gets trauma thinking about
the future.
This is a story about one family who got evicted during the
eviction drive at the EWS Slum, Ejipura,
Bangalore on 18th January 2013. Lest we forget there are
other 1511 family who were also evicted from the same area and facing life just
as bad if not worse.
- Lallian Valte
