Three weeks on, survivors of Red Fort blast struggle to get back on their feet

On the evening of November 10, Shania Parveen, 23, was excitedly shopping for her wedding at Chandni Chowk, near the historic Red Fort, in old Delhi. By late evening, she was in a hospital following a blast that ripped through the area, leaving her almost deaf.

Nearly three weeks later, the once-vibrant lanes of Chandni Chowk are back to business — almost. But Ms. Parveen has lost not just her hearing but also her job. She recently received a message from her employer that the private company, where she was working as an accountant, won’t be able to retain her services since she has not been able to go back to work.

Doctors at the Lok Nayak Hospital, where she is undergoing treatment, told her a surgery could help her regain her hearing abilities but Ms. Parveen doesn’t know where the money for that would come from. With an ailing father at home and no clarity on any compensation from the government, Ms. Parveen, like several other survivors of the Red Fort blast, is struggling to make ends meet.

A day after the blast, Delhi’s Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, in a social media post, had announced that the families of those who lost their lives in this incident, will be given an ex gratia of ₹10 lakh each. The Chief Minister also said that the permanently disabled individuals will receive ₹5 lakh, and seriously injured people will be provided ₹2 lakh. The Minister also said that the State government will take responsibility for “proper and quality treatment of the injured”.

However, several survivors who lost their livelihoods said they are yet to get any help from the government to get back on their feet.

When contacted, the Chief Minister’s Office said the process is going on and the compensation will be doled out at the earliest.

‘Livelihoods lost’

Bhawani Shankar, 34, a cab driver, who was driving in the area on the fateful day, is trying hard to cobble up money for the upcoming monthly EMI for a four-wheeler he bought on loan 10 months back. Mr. Shankar, who sustained serious burn injuries on his left arm and face, doesn’t even know where his car is. “The authorities haven’t told me yet where my car is and what state it is in. They have not even allowed the insurance company to survey it,” said Mr. Shankar, who lives in a one-room rented accommodation in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, with his three children and wife.

Yasin Ansari, an e-rickshaw driver found himself in a similar position after he lost his vehicle in the incident. The resident of Karawal Nagar who had sold his wife’s gold jewellery to buy the e-rickshaw for ₹2 lakh, has been rendered without any means of living. “I am now thinking of going back to my village in Uttar Pradesh but I don’t want to uproot my children from their schools and lives here,” said Mr. Ansari.

The e-rickshaw driver, who sustained burns on his feet and a head injury, at present is reaching out to his previous employers for garment stitching work for both him and his wife. “Stitching work does not pay well but something is better than nothing,” said Mr. Ansari.