Geographic Alliance of Iowa Geographic Alliance of Iowa
Window
on a New Delhi Tent City
By Kay Weller
I took some good pictures out of the Nikon Hotel in Delhi. Things we saw a collective latrine we think, tent city (several) hogs, trash, cars, pool renovation, people, bank, apartment buildings, trees, water tower (I think), buses, some sort of tilling going on and planting we think, mixing cement, dilapidated truck unloading something.
Scholars write volumes on poverty citing all the statistics to support theories and offer solutions to serious social and health related issues associated with it. However, scholarly work can only provide a sterile environment for the reader. It was not until I had the opportunity to spend an extended amount of time in a hotel in Delhi, India, that I really “saw” life in poverty. Many hours were spent observing the tent city immediately behind my hotel.
Photo 1 goes about here
Walking to the window I immediately saw an open space that may be used at some of the year for a small amount of crops. However, I am here during the monsoon season so it seems to primarily be covered with weeks and small shrubs and every low spot has pooled rain water. Looking just beyond the open space I see a tent city with at least 100 small tents and other very small huts. Turning to the right I see a bank. Huddled against the back wall of the building is a group of two tents and one hut. This small tent city provided countless opportunities to observe life as it is for many of India’s impoverished people. This manuscript will try to provide a description of the geography of a tent city.
The open space itself was an interesting place. Hogs roamed the area eating whatever they could find. Street dogs rest among the weeds and in dryer spots. Men use the weeds as a latrine. Sometimes as many as ten men at one time can be spotted. Privacy is a word I am sure these impoverished people would not understand. The sheer density of their numbers makes modesty and privacy out of reach for them. The large tent city seems to have a public latrine. I saw mostly women at the latrine. Early in the morning there was a long line of women waiting. I seriously doubt there were facilities for bathing there because as one travels by auto many people take bucket baths out along the streets.
No where can I see a public water source. However, in the area I see two water towers and suspect that perhaps the large tent city does indeed have some sort of water source. How safe it may actually be is quite another matter. The small group of tents seems to keep their water in plastic jugs but I cannot tell where they go to get it.
Immediately behind the walls around the hotel one can see heaps of rubbish. The urban planning institute Dr. Tewari said there is waste management here. However, it would be difficult to believe that if one were to see only the piles of rubbish I can see from the window. Early in the morning I saw a woman looking through the rubbish. What she was looking for I have no idea. A rat crawls long the wall that separates our hotel from the tent city.
Children have few opportunities to be children. Many risk life and limb begging in the streets and going from auto to auto hoping for a small coin. The government does not want people to support those activities according to Mr. Baloni but sometimes people do anyway. Toward evening a group of boys began flying kites. This is the only child’s play I observed. The kites were pretty ordinary and not particularly colorful as they are in some parts of Asia.
Activities seem to take place in tent city from dawn to dusk. There were no lights in the tent city at night except for a very short period of time I saw one. It left me speculating about whether people sit and visit or if they simply sleep so that they are able to be up and around early in the morning.
The pooling of water in the open space would seem to be a prime location for the breeding of mosquitoes. People sometimes used these pools of water to clean themselves after defecating. Other times they carry a small bottle of water for that purpose.
At no time could see anyone eating. There seemed to be no fires for preparing food.
Early in the morning a dilapidated truck pulled up by the small tent group. Men seemed to be unloading something that I could not identify.
There seems to be such a wide disparity between classes in India. According to Mr. Baloni and Dr.Tewari class and caste are not one. They said the people in tent cities are likely immigrants from rural areas who have come looking for work. Most do not seem to have any work or at best only occasional work.
People walk barefoot or with rubber thong sandals through the open space. How do they keep from getting cut on trash?
It surprises me how many people use the corner of the open space and two openings in the walls to cut through the area on their way to work. They are definitely working people because men are wearing dark slacks and light colored long sleeved shirts. Women trudge through the area with their sarees. How do they keep them clean with all the rain and mud along the path?
One thing that remains a mystery to me is the work a trio of men seemed to be doing. They had a piece of very old machinery that appears to be some sort of tiller. They made one small furrow and then seemed to be planting something. After that the men spent the time working on the machinery.
Demographics of the 4 tent city by the bank and commercial center. Two adult males, two children, two females. Three males brought a hand pushed cart of garbage and dumped it into the pile in the corner closest to our room. Where did it come from? They stopped by tent two and then dumped it. Now it is raining again and the cart and men have disappeared. A woman in tent two is drinking something. I can see her through the door opening. A man arrives on a bicycle. Has something in a large bag on the back. He is having a difficult time getting it off. Empties it into the round thing, which may be a container, furthest from our room. Does he live in one of the tents? I think he must or at least have something to do with the hogs. The hogs hang around the container quite a lot. Here come the three men again with another load of what must be garbage. I believe that they must go with the tents because they stopped by again.
Some people have umbrellas but most do not. The rain is in general quite warm and the rain makes the day far more pleasant.
02/08/03
Observations of the large tent city from my window.
I would be surprised if there are not from 300-500 people living in small space. It makes me extremely sad to see such poverty. I see two bicycles. They are probably the most affluent of the lot. I seriously doubt that many have any type of transportation whatsoever. Naturally the question that most often comes to mind is that of caste. Are these the untouchables? Mr. Baloni says that even those who live in tents and on the streets can go to government hospitals for care. If they take in their children the children receive inoculations. How many of these people that I am observing even know about the services? Perhaps they do but it is hard for me to believe that they are aware of many available social services.
Dr. Tewari said that naturally population is the largest problem urban India faces. The cities cannot keep up with their growth in such areas as streets, housing for the poor, etc. It is obvious today that that is the case. How do you provide adequate education, even rudimentary, for such large numbers of young children? The children are in school at this time. All wear uniforms. There are several children in my line of vision. None has on a school uniform. That would indicate that they are not attending school. This kind of situation only exacerbates the problems of urban India.
I see city buses come by the street entrance to the tent city. I wonder if anyone can afford to ride them.
The men with the machine and poles have now constructed something with poles. They are doing something with the unidentified machine. A man returns with a jug of something. Is it fuel for the motor of the machine? Does the machine even have a motor? One man seems to be cranking a handle of some sort. I don’t know why at this point.
From where I watch there is absolutely no way to determine where there might be a drinking water source. Do the latrines have water in them? They do not have electricity or I would have seen lights last night. I have seen no one take any jug into the latrine so my assumption is that it is not located there.
About a dozen little boys are playing in the open space with a about three or four kites. They are sometimes watching the met who have constructed the pole triangle and the machine from yesterday. Four men are working on it. They keep going to the pooled water with a bucket and taking the water to the pole area. I cannot figure out what is going on. It has kept four men busy nearly all day. I find that it takes many people to complete one task here. Usually it has to do with bureaucracy but today it seems to me that most tasks require lots of man power.
It is nearly 3:00 pm and the open space and tent cities are busy with people. The sun is coming out so that seems to be making a difference also. Vehicles seem to come and go at the little tent city. I am still trying to figure out how many people must be living there. Man taking a rest on some large pipes that are piled along the wall separating the tent village from the open space.
The lady with a red sari has finally come out of the tent. She has been sitting in the tent most of the day that I have observed her. She is wandering over into the far open space to use the bathroom. The lady in the red sari seems to have a small baby that looks to be about six to nine months. She is apparently married to the man laying on the pipes. They went into the middle tent together. That means that at least three people live in that tent.
Tent construction: blue tarps with wood or cardboard sides for rigidity. Then there are large sheets of clear plastic over the tops. The one hut looks to be made of small bricks of some sort. They seem to be clay bricks however, they must be cured/baked in some way or they would disintegrate in the rain.
3-08-03
It is Sunday and the monsoon was heavy during the night and early morning. People seemed a bit slower to get out and about as a result. I am still watching the same two women in red and saffron sarees. I know now that there are at least two children and a Mother in each of the tents. However, I am uncertain about the brick shelter. Who lives there? The total number living behind the bank is still not easily counted. I see people there all day long but am not sure who really belongs there other than the women and children.
Dr. V. Tewari said that many squatters get assistance from the local mafia. The local mafia helps them illegally hook up to electricity. If any of the squatters in either of the tent cities I am observing has been able to take advantage of this opportunity I do not know. However, I see no evidence of any kind of lighting as dusk approaches and night falls. Once I saw one small light for a very short period of time behind the bank but that is the only time.
There is not as much activity today, Sunday, August 03, 2003, as yesterday behind the bank. I do not know if perhaps some jobs may be unavailable because it is Sunday or not. There are several men sitting on the large stack of pipe. They do not seem to be doing anything today.
04/08/03
This morning it is monsooning very hard. Few seem to be up and about. However, the man in the middle tent behind the bank comes out with a plastic bag over his head and rides off on a bicycle. I wonder where he is going.
A few hardy souls are out in the open space. I suspect that most will wait awhile in hopes that the rain will subside. Other men seem to be coming from around the corner of the building. Are there other tents over there? I cannot help but wonder. Lines are beginning to form near the women’s latrine. Some people have umbrellas several are using large pieces of plastic to protect themselves from the rain. Men are beginning to walk along the mud street. There seems to be a great deal of activity of various sorts in the large settlement.
All buildings I can see from this window seem to have walls topped with barbed wire to keep street people out. The large squatter settlement seem to have been there longer than the small because their shelters are constructed from pieces of tin, and other more hardy materials. I see pieces of blue tarps covering the tops of several. Never do I see lights after dark.
I am still uncertain how many people are living behind the bank. There are at least 2 male adults, 2 female adults, 2 babies, and 3 other children. The children do not go out to the open space to play with the boys from the large squatter village. Children do not attend school. Do the parents have even a rudimentary education? I seriously doubt it.
A white bald headed man carrying a bucket and wearing shorts just walked through the bank village at 7:00 am. Where did he come from and what is he doing there? Will I see him again? Hogs are out and about this morning enjoying the rain. They must have a shelter on the other side of the bank building? Is this bank abandoned? Perhaps today I can figure out some of that.
The woman in saffron is now out of her tent (7:20 am). The rain has subsided at least somewhat based on what I can see from the window. She goes near the wall and seems to get something from there that I think must be water. Perhaps they have been collecting rain water. One thing I have noticed is that men in the tent cities do not have turbans. Why is that? Street dogs are sure out and roaming in the open space this morning. They are surely a source of rabies. The woman in red is out of the tent now also. Lady in saffron departs with her two large jugs. She is apparently going for water. Where does she go? I will time her. That may give me a clue or two. I did not see her return.
In the afternoon I took a walk going left out of the hotel. I took several photos. There are all kinds of shops available within a 5 min. walk of the squatters. There was a grocery with chips and crackers along with other kinds of things. There was also several places to purchase clothes. They looked used to me. They were not very clean. Of course that could be due to pollution. There was one shop where men were sewing the clothes. There was a furniture shop, a chemist, a vocational school for things such as typing. A rickshaw driver guided us to a cottage industries emporium. It was a place to bargain. I was skeptical of it of course. That is my nature I guess. We did not purchase anything. Our rickshaw driver was there waiting for us and having his rickshaw washed by someone who lived in the residence by the emporium. There were signs in the emporium that said the carpets are made without child labor. How does one really know though. I find it hard to believe all the signs. Many of the group prefer to shop at some of these kinds of places but I do not. I prefer the ones where the tour guide takes us. That way I know that the government has approved the products being sold in them.
I found out from the rickshaw driver that the boys I saw going to school this morning go to a government school nearby. They attend from 7:00 am to 1:00 pm. That would be best with the hot days I am sure. The boys were returning home when we left the emporium. They really were curious about us. You could see them laughing at us and talking. I am sure we look funny to them. At the emporium I saw some more squatter huts. One would never know they are tucked in among the buildings without getting out and walking.
The contraption using three poles is now down and the tiller portion is sitting in the roadway and spinning. I do not know what they are doing but I keep thinking that perhaps they are drilling for water.
The lady in the red sari now has on a blue one over the red top. Perhaps she will be doing laundry soon. The lady in saffron is now wearing green. The saffron sari is laying on the top of her tent. Is she drying it? I can’t think it could possibly dry in this humidity. It is very hot and humid. The lady in red/blue is carrying a jug somewhere. There must be a water source nearby but I don’t know where. I did not figure that out on my excursion. Here she comes back with the water. It has only been about 5 min. so it must be quite close.
A man just came out of the brick hut. It has a door. That is something the others do not have. Here comes a white van to the dump area. Each day I see more clearly how little the individual can do.
Two men just arrived. They appear to be looking at the materials stacked beside the brick hut. They are dressed well so they are not part of the squatter residents. They are still hanging around there. One has a paper in his hand. The women are not paying any attention to them. Perhaps this happens frequently.
The women sweep many times per day. Why is that? The little girl is wearing a dress today.
What are the demographics?
Sketch map of the tent city
See what I can see from another window
References:
Baloni,
Denish.
Indebo.
Personal communication. New Delhi, India
Tewari,
Vinod. National Institute of Urban Affairs, personal communication New
Delhi, India
Questions for a structured discussion:
