Rain, coldwave grapple Delhi, homeless people take refuge in night shelters

New Delhi: As rain lashes, several parts of the national capital and the coldwave sweeps the city, many homeless people were forced to take refuge in night shelters in Delhi. 

"Today many people are coming here because of the rain. We provide many facilities including blankets, hot water, medicines. Tonight there are 19 people at the shelter. Some are rickshaw pullers, some do job, homeless people come here to take shelter," Manoj Kumar, caretaker of the night shelter at Lodhi Road told ANI.

Caretaker of Raja Garden night shelter, Rishipal, said that the shelter is following COVID-19 protocols in place. He also added that the doctors visit the place twice a week. "We provide food. There are beds and blankets. There are medicines, sanitizers and temperature scanners. COVID rules are followed here. We have an ambulance facility in case of an emergency," Rishipal said.

Meanwhile, rain lashed parts of the Capital city and the national capital region (NCR) on Wednesday under the influence of a western disturbance. The maximum temperature in the national capital was recorded at 16 degrees Celcius.

Earlier, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) in its weekly forecast for Delhi had predicted that the city is likely to receive rainfall from January 5 to 9. IMD had said that the sky will remain cloudy with the possibility of light rain on January 5, 6 and 7, whereas thundershowers are expected on January 8 and 9.