There are over 70 shelter homes in Assam and yet, homelessness looms large for women seeking shelter due to a mix of fear, confusion and lack of COVID19 related guidelines.
At 2 pm on Friday, the 8th of May, Anurita Pathak Hazarika of North East Network in Assam, received a call from Mamata Mishra, a local journalist who had come across a young woman wandering aimlessly on the streets of Chandmari, Guwahati. She did not seem very conscious of her surroundings and could not tell if she had a home or was looking for shelter.
Anurita asked Mamata to call the State Women’s Helpline Number and inform them of the situation, also contacting relevant police departments for immediate action. The police finally arrived at 8 pm in the night -5 hoursafter making the call. The cops left soon after stating they had other matters to take care of. Mamta was at her wit’s end. She continued to console the woman and contacted the police again and Anurita continued her efforts to find this woman a home
Responses to Anurita’s incessant calls ranged from ‘It’s risky to admit her now!’ to ‘We can only admit her after she’s screened for the virus’, to ‘We do not have space to accommodate more women’ to‘We need a medical certificate to consider admission’ to‘We have beds available but we fear contamination’ to ‘These are difficult times; we are clueless’.
The reason cited for this by a Government official was that they hadn’t received clear guidelines related to admission procedures during COVID19. They sounded helpless and apologetic.
Case Study reported by North East Network
Location: Guwahati
