As mercury dips, Delhi govt rolls out winter action plan to shelter homeless

New Delhi, Nov 14 (PTI) As temperatures dip, the Delhi government has rolled out its Winter Action Plan for 2025-26 in a seasonal push to shelter the homeless from the biting cold -- providing warm beds, blankets, hot water and basic amenities such as toilets, drinking water, lockers and lighting.

The Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) said it currently operates 197 shelter homes across the city, including 82 permanent buildings and 115 porta cabins (temporary structures).

The DUSIB said, from November 15, around 200-250 pagoda-style tents will be added at locations with large concentrations of homeless people, increasing the capacity by 2,000-2,500 beds. These temporary shelters will remain operational till March 15.

The plan focuses on providing facilities such as mattresses, blankets, pillows, drinking water, toilets, electricity, bathing spaces where available, lockers for belongings and hot water during peak winter, it stated.

According to officials, to ensure those sleeping outdoors are brought to safety, the DUSIB will deploy 15 rescue teams working every night between 10 pm and 4 am. Each team will have a vehicle, driver and two attendants to respond to alerts from the DUSIB control room or citizens.

A Joint Apex Advisory Committee -- comprising officials from multiple agencies including Delhi Jal Board, health department, municipal bodies and the police -- will monitor implementation and coordination, ensuring smooth functioning of the shelters.

The DUSIB said the Supreme Court-appointed monitoring committee will also review progress at regular intervals, while divisional engineers and departmental teams will conduct maintenance checks across all shelter homes.

The "Rain Basera" app, relaunched on November 10, allows any citizen to upload a photo of a homeless person in need of help. The DUSIB said the app uses GPS location to alert rescue teams and track the status of complaints.

Public awareness campaigns on the locations and functioning of shelter homes were launched a week ahead of the plan's rollout, the DUSIB said.

Caretakers are deployed round-the-clock in three shifts at the shelter homes. The lodgers are allotted beds and blankets depending on availability and can use facilities such as drinking water, toilets, lockers, hot water, TV, and first-aid kits free of cost, it added. PTI SHB ARB ARB