In Lajpat Nagar, silence drowns out normal din
NEW DELHI: In the bustling markets of Lajpat Nagar, a go-to place for shoppers and tourists, the ubiquitous cycle rickshaws that normally vie for space with pedestrians are nowhere to be seen. There is also lots of space, none that needs to be vied for.
Since March 25, when a 21-day nationwide lockdown kicked in to contain the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), long-time residents in the area say they are nonplussed by the silence, bro- ken only by barking street dogs, chirping birds, and the occasional vehicle.
The busy Central Market is now empty, its 700-odd shops shut. Only four establishments — two chemists and two grocers — stay open these days.
“We have been meeting virtually to discuss measures such as providing food to workers and other vulnerable sections. We made around 1,000 kits of dry ration for distribution to families of migrant workers and rickshaw pullers. Our area has a large migrant workforce and a good number of street vendors, all of whom have been left with little means to fend for themselves,” said Ashwani Marwah, general secretary of the Lajpat Nagar traders’ association.
In the Afghan colony in Lajpat Nagar-2, however, business seems a bit more like usual. Also, the direct impact of the lockdown on foreign nationals is visible here. Even though five flights have been arranged so far by the Afghanistan government to get its citizens home, several Afghans who visit India for medical treatment are stranded in the Lajpat Nagar locality that has long been their haunt.
For many of them, Lajpat Nagar — a residential area developed to house refugees who immigrated from Pakistan during Partition — is a second home.
Thirty-year-old Hamid Hakim, an Afghan, said he wanted to stay back in Delhi as the city has better medical. However,
his budget does not permit him. “Due to closure of banks, we have not been able to exchange currency. No money transfer is happening and I’m slowly running out of money,” he said.
Thirty-year-old Hamida, who is here to collect her degree from a Delhi college, said her flight to Kabul is scheduled for April 5. “But I cannot return home to Herat province and will have to stay in Kabul at some hotel as Herat is in lockdown,” she said.
Among those hurrying back home is 80-year-old Khalid Mohammad, who came for an eye treatment with his wife and daughter. “I will now have to leave my treatment halfway and return to my country,” he said.
In other parts of the residential area, the only ones out on the road are vegetable and fruit vendors. Satish, a fruit-seller, says business has taken a hit. His faced covered by a mask , Satish makes it a point to wash his hands every time after serving a customer.
Nisha, a 21-year-old student at Zakir Hussain College, said she and her family are worried about the increasing number of cases from Nizamuddin, which is not far from from Lajpat Nagar.
“Due to the lockdown, I cannot join my internship as I was supposed to. The number of cases being reported from Nizamuddin is alarming,” she said. The headquarters of the Tablighi Jamaat in Nizamudding has emerged as a Covid-19 hot spot over the past three days.
Meanwhile, the local residents’ welfare associations (RWA) in the area have been ensuring that people don’t step out, unless absolutely necessary. “In the whole of Lajpat Nagar-4 (Amar Colony), only three of the 25 gates remain open during the day. Only one person from a family is allowed to go out at a time to get essentials. We arrange for essentials such as medicines for senior citizens who are living alone,” said Pramod Kumar Taneja, chairman of the Amar Colony RWA.
He says the RWA has tied up with the local councillor to provide food and essentials to nearly 4,000 people housed in the slum clusters nearby. “The food is being prepared in our block and two persons take it daily to the slums.”
Abhishek Dutt, the councillor from Andrews Ganj, South Delhi Municipal Corporation, says he has been in constant touch with RWAs and was responding to their needs. “On our local helpline number — 8883030201 — for Kasturba Nagar constituency, of which Lajpat Nagar is a part, I have got at least 35 complaints from people who are disabled and could not go out to get food. We have ensured that all such people are catered to. From Thursday, we are also starting an initiative with RWAs to provide cooked meals to labourers and other workers at least once a day,” Dutt said.