Night shelters in cities a shocking state of affairs: HC

The High Court of Karnataka on Thursday directed the district legal services authorities to make surprise visits in different cities to verify the conditions and the facilities provided at the existing night shelters.

A division bench, headed by Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka, passed this direction after perusing the statement submitted by the government on the night shelters across the cities in the state.

The state government informed the court that a total 166 night shelters are required in the cities with the population of over one lakh. However, presently only 46 night shelters are functioning in different cities as against the approved number of 64 shelters. The bench observed that the prevailing situation of number of night shelters reveals a shocking state of affairs.

The statistics provided by the state government revealed that for a population of 84.18 lakh (2011 census), there are only 10 night shelters as against the approved number of 15 shelters. According to the government, Bengaluru city requires 84 night shelters. Similarly, while the required shelters are nine, only one shelter is functioning in Mysuru, and in Hubballi-Dharwad as against the requirement of 9 shelters, only two are functioning.

The bench directed the government to provide 42 night shelters in the city of Bengaluru within a period of three months and also to set up the remaining shelters in other cities within the period of next three months.

The court is hearing a PIL filed by People’s Union of Civil Liberties (PUCL) challenging the constitutional validity of certain provisions of Karnataka Prohibition of Beggary Act, 1975, as well as the Prohibition of Beggary Rules, 1975. The petitioner has prayed for direction for conduct of an audit regarding the expenditure of beggary cess collected and also implementation of operational guidelines for Urban Homeless Shelters issued on May 29, 2014.