In order to remove and rehabilitate homeless individuals living under a flyover in the Guwahati neighbourhood of Ulubari, top police officers in Guwahati carried out a late-night drive on Tuesday. After Himanta Biswa Sarma, the chief minister of Assam, ordered officials to give housing and employment possibilities to those observed living with their families beneath the overpass, the police took action.
Pallav Gopal Jha, the deputy commissioner for Kamrup (Metro), went to the Ulubari neighbourhood and directly observed the rehabilitation effort. Officials met homeless persons and relocated them to shelter homes, as seen in a video published by news agency.
Earlier in the day, CM Himanta Biswa Sarma urged DC Guwahati to give immediate housing and employment prospects for a family he (DC) observes at night in Ulubari because it is dangerous for them to live on the road because they have two to three children.
According to Pallav Gopal Jha, Guwahati’s homeless population and number of persons living on the streets have significantly increased during the past three to four months.
“A new problem has been developing in Guwahati for the last 3-4 months. The number of beggars and street-dwellers has increased considerably. That poses a challenge of different sorts. We are conducting a drive to send them to govt shelter homes and NGOs. We are trying to understand why they are outside on the streets,” Jha said.
He added that Himanta Biswa Sarma, the chief minister, frequently visits Guwahati at night to observe the problems the city suffers.
