Shelter homes: Apex Court questions Centre’s allotment of Rs 1,078 cr

The Supreme Court on Friday posed tough questions on the allotment of Rs 1,078 crore under the National Urban Livelihood Mission (NULM) to states and asked the Centre to apprise it as to what happened to the huge money and whether new shelter homes for the urban poor have been built.

Highlighting the need to monitor the use of funds by the Centre, the Apex Court sought details of the expenditure and observed that it seemed that “money has been wasted”.

“On what basis have you released Rs 1,000 crore? Tell us how many shelters have you made and on what basis?,” the social justice Bench of Justices Madan B Lokur and UU Lalit said. The Apex Court also pulled up the Centre for not effectively monitoring the implementation the NULM, which was meant for the urban poor and homeless. “I don’t know whether you have been to a shelter home or not. But when I was working as the Delhi high court judge, homeless people said they don’t want to go to the shelter. These shelters are useless, even a homeless person doesn’t want to live in them,” Justice Madan B Lokur said.

Additional Solicitor General Pinky Anand told the Bench that efforts were on to make the shelters liveable and the government was taking the matter with utmost “seriousness”.