The Hindu                23.07.2012

Mangalore City Corporation plans a permanent night shelter

Refuge:The temporary night shelter near Urwa Market in Mangalore houses 40 inmates.— PHOTO: H.S. MANJUNATH

The Mangalore City Corporation would set up a permanent night shelter at old port area for those sleeping on pavements, bus-stands, and railway stations, said Commissioner of the corporation Harish Kumar K.

The civic body would set up the shelter on its own site at an estimated cost of Rs. 60 lakh. The State Government would allocate the fund, he told The Hindu .

There is an old building on the site. It would be demolished and the shelter would be built to accommodate 100 people. The construction would take sometime as the design of the building was yet to be finalised, he said.

Mr. Kumar said that now that the corporation had two temporary night shelters. It was managed by a non-governmental organisation. The one near Sharavu Temple had 20 inmates and the other near Urwa Market had 40 inmates.

A survey conducted a fortnight ago found 130 people, including the 60 inmates, “houseless” in the city. As they could not be accommodated in temporary shelters, the civic body had asked the owner of a high rise building which was not in use near the temple to accommodate the “houseless” temporarily. The high-rise building was formerly a hotel and the owner was in Mumbai. Talks were on to get the building temporarily. He said that since it was rainy season more people, mainly migrant workers, used bus-stands and railway stations to sleep at night.

Mr. Kumar said the civic body was now conducting a survey of “houseless” in the city every fortnight.

The Supreme Court in 2010 had asked urban local bodies to conduct a survey of people who slept on pavements. It had asked urban local bodies to set up temporary night shelters and make arrangements for constructing permanent ones.