DM apologises over 'dumping' of homeless people outside Indore

Indore District Magistrate ManishShukla on Sunday said he has apologised to God for the localadministration's action of dumping homeless people outside thecity amid the cold weather, which led to a public outrage.

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra hasalso criticised the incident, terming it a ''blot on humanity'',while actor Sonu Sood, who came into spotlight for helpingmigrants return to their homes amid the COVID-19 lockdown lastyear, urged Indore residents to help the homeless people.

Facing flak over the incident which took place onFriday, District Magistrate Singh, while attending a religiousevent at a Ganesh temple in Khajrana area here on Sunday, saidhe apologised to God on behalf of the administration.

''Whosoever might have been at fault in this incident,but we are officers and we can't run away from ourresponsibility. Hence, we prayed to God to forgive us for ourmistakes,'' Singh told reporters.

On Friday, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhansuspended an Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC) official aftervideos of homeless people being driven out of the city anddropped near a village went viral on social media.

The civic body has also removed two temporaryemployees from the job.

The incident has taken place at a time when theadministration of Indore, which has won the country's'cleanest city' tag four times in a row, is making all effortsto keep the city neat and tidy to win the 'Sawchh Sarvekshan2021'.

In a Twitter post on Saturday, Priyanka Gandhi Vadrasaid it was a ''blot on humanity'' and sought action against theofficials who ordered such an action.

Sood in a video message on Saturday appealed toresidents of Indore to come forward and help the homelesspeople get a roof on their heads.

When contacted, Additional Municipal CommissionerAbhay Rajangaonkar told PTI on Sunday that, ''We are conductinga detailed investigation into the incident. All facts willcome to light after the inquiry.'' Around 2.30 pm on Friday, some municipal workersbrought eight to 10 people, who were homeless and lookingweak, in a truck and dropped them near Shipra village outsidethe city, said Rajesh Joshi, who runs a tea stall in thevillage and recorded the incident on his mobile phone.

They were forcibly taking out these people, includingtwo women, from the truck, Joshi said.

''When I started recording it, some municipal workerssaid they were dropping these people here (in the village)following a government order, as they were dirtying the city,''he claimed.

After villagers protested, the IMC staff took thosepeople back to the city, he said.

In the video, these elderly people, including some whowere unable to walk properly, were seen sitting dejected alonga roadside. Their belongings tied in rags were also seenscattered around.

Meanwhile, local Congress MLA Sanjay Shukla claimedthat municipal workers on Friday forcibly drove 15 elderlypeople out of the city.

''After the villagers protested, they brought back onlyfour of them and lodged them in a shelter home. Where are theother 11? They were possibly dropped between the village andthe city during return,'' Shukla said.

The MLA said they have complained to police aboutthis.

However, IMC's Additional Commissioner Rajangaonkarclaimed that only six elderly people were taken out of thecity and they were brought back.

''Out of them, three were lodged in a shelter home,while three others, after alighting from the truck, left ontheir own will,'' he said.

As many as 10 shelter homes are being run in the citywhere homeless people are being sent to protect them from thebiting cold, officials said.

As of now, only 76 people are staying in these shelterhomes, they said.

Many homeless people do not stay in these shelterhomes as these places do not have facilities for food, theyadded.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)