SURAT URBAN HABITAT PROJECT – UNDER SHELTERS FOR URBAN

HOMELESS SCHEME - DAY – NULM

DISCUSSION PAPER FOR DISTRICT LEVEL DECENTRALIZED CONVERGENCE

PLANNING WORKSHOP FOR DIGNITY OF URBAN HOMELESS MIGRANTS
SURAT, GUJARAT

26TH MARCH ,2019

The National Urban Housing & Habitat Policy (NUHHP), 2007 aims at promoting sustainable
development of habitat in the country with a view to ensuring equitable supply of land, shelter and
services at affordable prices to all sections of the society. However, the most vulnerable of these are the
urban homeless. The Urban homeless persons contribute to the economy of the cities and thus the nation
as cheap labour in the informal sector; yet they live with no shelter or social security protection. The
urban homeless survive with many challenges like no access to elementary public services such as health,
education, food, water and sanitation. National Urban Livelihoods Mission (NULM) aims at providing
permanent shelter equipped with essential services to the urban homeless in a phased manner under the
Scheme of Shelter for Urban Homeless (SUH). A space of minimum 50 sq. ft per person to be provided
in the shelters.
Surat Municipal Corporation and Tata Trusts Mumbai jointly working to establishe operation
cum management model of permanent shelter for homeless . Shelters for Urban Homeless (SUH) under
Deendayal Antyodaya Mission- National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM). We are developing
some best sustainable & replicable model of shelters home as per guideline of the Mission (one shelter
per 1 lakh population with capacity of 100 people) in different strategic locations within the city which
and scaled up by the government of India. TATA Trust is supporting SMC for effective implementation
of SUH component by demonstrating model shelter by setting up of basic facilities with amenities and
capacity building of shelter management agency/s in undertaking operation and management of the
Shelters and regularise in conducting shelter management committee progress review meeting . In this
sequence for creating permanent shelter home (24X7 ) including safe and secure protection from the
elements , access to safe drinking water ,sanitation and allied facilities for dignified survival.
Challenges, Scope and opportunity for homelessness which is in part a direct result of family
migration from rural to urban cities especially approximate 100 million Indians have moved in search of
work from their native place. Where do they go and find work. Surat has been one of the world’s fastest
growing cities of the past four decades, with annual population growth rates exceeding 6%, and over 70%
of the city’s workforce today is sourced from outside. In order to make the diamonds and synthetic sarees,
mostly adorned by women, Surat employs over a million male migrant workers drawn from all over India.
Surat is widely considered to be the big city of migrants.
In Surat over 11000 of the population found homeless as per the recent survey conducted by Urban
Livelihood Mission. As a result, they have little or no access to basic services: education health &
sanitation, no access to clean drinking water , social security and even one in five urban households do
not have their own toilet, and instead depend on shared facilities. This also explains why India accounts
for nearly half of the global population defecating in the open.
The current population density of Surat is roughly equal to the nation of EI Salvador or US state of
Missouri, This is 12th in India Around 95 Per cent of the homeless are migrants from other cities and
states , they have come to here to earn a living but some are forced to beg and selling petty items on cross
road or work as daily wagers. As per the last Survey report there are over 8450 homeless people living on
the footpath and under the bridges in the city More than 1361 children (593 Female and 769 Male) in the
age group of up to 14 live homeless in urban areas. Around 47% of the children of the urban poor are
malnourished. Some of the most badly affected by these constraints are the young people growing up in
these urban street. As a result of this and the already low school enrolment rates, 68% of street children
are illiterate.

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Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) plans to build eight shelter homes at the cost of Rs 11 crore with
total capacity of 6,000 for these homeless people. One of them with capacity of 172 has already started
in SMIMER compound where facilities such as anganwadi education, subsidized meals, medical
treatment and even milk for infants and pregnant mother is being provided At present, there are 33
families living in SMIMER shelter home including 88 males, 54 women, 32 children from 0 to 5 years
age, 03 pregnant mothers, two disabled person and 12 old-age persons. The survey showed there were
7,078 homeless men and 3,867 women.
Surat Municipal Corporation aims to Putting in place effective management system for smooth
functioning of shelters with quality services. Setting up an effective real time monitoring system to
provide shelter for each homeless, demonstrating sustainable and replicable shelter with basic amenities
its provide for kitchen & dining facility for cooking. It includes multiple dormitory and family dwellings
space, Creativity room for education or learning through recreation ,proper health check-ups room,
Office room, play zone and additional space for children’s day-care purposes , entertainment ,library for
all age groups etc.
Through such demonstration of model shelters, the project seeks to inform and educate all related
stakeholders on the required standards on basic facilities and amenities, their operation and
management, and help in capacity building and training for the associated shelter management agencies.
Social and economic upliftment also forms a core objective of the project. Efforts are underway to link
the inmates at Surat Urban Habitat Project’s model shelters with the government’s social security
schemes and they are being facilitated to join the formal banking system, as well. These, and other
engagement activities under this project, are expected to better integrate homeless urban migrants into
the mainstream, empower them to find more enduring sources of livelihood , health ,education, social
and behaviour change in homeless community and thereby lead a safer and more dignified existence.
The key objectives of Consultation workshop on Sustainable Planning Through
Convergence Action and Public Private Partnership for Life of Urban Homeless Poor
component are to demonstrate strong model of institutional structures at the National, State, and City
levels for efficient implementation of the NULM and build capacity of the urban poor, their institutions
and the machinery involved in the implementation of NULM. transform the role of Surat Municipal
Corporation and State Agencies in charge of urban poverty alleviation into providers of high-quality
technical assistance in the field of livelihood promotion and urban poverty alleviation. Create learning
case studies for Convergence with other Missions and under SUH Schemes -

• To review existing policy guidelines of revised Scheme of Shelter for Urban Homeless under
DAY - NULM for Awareness and understanding
• To exchange information, Idea, Innovations, Experience and Solutions of Urban Homeless
Challenges
• To identify sustainable solution on the basis of recommendations
• To Discuses about the present scenario and scope of Convergence
• To Allocate support of local governance
• To Discuss about the Corporate Social Responsibility and support

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What to Bring from this inter departmental planning consultation workshop?

In this mainstream debates Surat Municipal Corporation and other stockholders should able develop a
concurrent plan for rehabilitation and resettlement of urban migrant homeless. the support of other
department to provide facility of livelihood, health, education, link with social security schemes and
formal banking system, as well other engagement activities under this project to give chance of living
better life for migrant homeless . In India we would like to stand in Surat as environmentally sustainable
cities, and tend to overlook people-centred approaches to the subject. Urban development and economic
growth are regarded as synonymous; cities are regarded as economic entities that contribute to overall
economic growth. Efforts to create a clean, liveable urban environment and to reduce social inequalities
are subsumed into this efficiency paradigm.
It is possible to address these concerns through this workshop for protecting the environment within a
favourable macro development model. All other the government department can play a significant role
in this conversation . Some of the other requirement will also fulfil like -
❖ Surat municipal Corporation can help to state for making effective government policies to
reduce inequality within the cities in urban areas
❖ Demonstrate democratic urban development processes that meet the needs of the
disadvantaged, and in which the most disadvantaged can participate
❖ Help in economic growth through activities that are non-polluting and labour intensive
❖ A sound, participatory regulatory mechanism to check unsustainable activities
❖ Demonstrate model of urban local governance responsibility for promoting human
development.

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