Delhi: How a facility for the intellectually disabled came apart

Within the space of a month, Delhi’s only homeless shelter for the intellectually disabled people has seen double the number of deaths than it did in the previous six months. 

The Asha Kiran home serves as the only ray of hope for the intellectually disabled who have nowhere to go, while also providing amenities to the physically handicapped. However, the home’s upkeep came under spotlight after it recorded 14 deaths in July. On an average, the home witnesses two to three deaths every month but has not witnessed deaths in double digits since its inception. At least 28 people have died inside the shelter since January. 

According to Delhi government sources, most deaths recorded inside showcased a similar pattern. The youngest inmate to die during July was a 14-year-old, whose cause of death in the preliminary report has been suggested to be loose motions. Six of the 14 deceased in the month reported to have been suffering from loose motions in their final days. 

Data from Asha Kiran’s Medical Care Unit revealed that almost 54 inmates were rushed to the Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hospital (Rohini) in July itself — the highest in six months. 

On the other hand, many of the deceased were also reported to be severely malnourished with symptoms of tuberculosis, gastroenteritis, and anaemia. 

Multiple workers have told Patriot, on the condition of anonymity, that many of them are brought to Asha Kiran in that state. 

They further said that the inmates, both children and adults with severe intellectual disability, are referred to them by Delhi government’s Child Welfare Committee (CWC). The fact that the Asha Kiran home is the only facility run by the Department of Social Welfare of the Delhi government, has also led to overcrowding. 

“Ours is the only shelter home run by the Delhi government for the intellectually disabled. Since there is no other home for them, the CWC refers all of them to our shelter. Our maximum capacity is 500, but we currently have almost 1,200 inmates. Given that there are no other shelter homes for the intellectually disabled, we can’t refer them to another facility,” said a worker. 

Apart from the 1,200 inmates, the shelter also hosts over 400 people who work inside. 

Considering the sensitivity of the patients involved, a constantly functioning medical care unit functions overnight every day with only six doctors, 17 nurses, 50 auxiliary nurses and midwife (ANM) professionals on the premises at all times. Official reports, however, suggest that following the Lieutenant Governor’s order in 2013, posts for 10 doctors, 249 nurses, and 62 ANMs were created at the facility. 

Poor Water Quality 

Nobody uses the water that they receive from the pipeline because of a lack of RO purifiers inside the facility and a periodic supply of contaminated water. According to the workers, they bring water from their homes. 

Even the food that is made available on the premises is not enough to help the patients who are already suffering from malnutrition. On August 3, three inmates were being treated at Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hospital, which had also witnessed 14 deaths. A caretaker has been assigned to attend to the three patients. 

“Almost all of them are suffering from one form of malnutrition or the other. Some have been suffering from convulsions because of a lack of protein intake, while others have anaemia and hypoalbuminemia, which is also caused by a lack of proteins and vital vitamins in their body. The kitchens are dirty and the space is insufficient for the number of people staying inside the shelter,” she said. 

The final report detailing the cause of death of the deceased has been placed in front of the magistrate. 

In a 2015 report, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) highlighted significant concerns about the Asha Kiran shelter home’s operations. The report revealed that the facility was severely overburdened, inadequately equipped for medical emergencies, and chronically understaffed. Disturbingly, it noted that 148 deaths had occurred at the shelter between 2009 and 2014. The report also criticised the department responsible for its apparent negligence addressing overcrowding at the complex.

Following the report, the shelter increased its maximum occupancy capacity to 500 from 350 which had been the assigned capacity since 1989, the year the shelter was set up. 

However, blame-game has ensued between the LG office and the Delhi government after the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) took suo moto cognisance of the matter. 

The NHRC had issued a notice to Delhi Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar and Police Commissioner, Sanjay Arora, over the deaths. The Human Rights Commission asked the authorities to file a detailed report on the deaths within four weeks. 

The report, according to NHRC, should contain the status of the FIR, action taken against the officials concerned, and the steps taken by the government to prevent a similar incident in future.

Both Delhi minister Atishi and LG, Vinai Kumar Saxena, had ordered a probe into the happenings inside the shelter home. The minister had ordered a magisterial probe into the matter to ascertain the facts of the situation, take sufficient action against the responsible officers and recommend measures to prevent such situations. 

“It is very shocking to hear such bad news in the capital city of Delhi, and we cannot tolerate such kinds of lapses, if found true. This is a very serious issue and needs to be thoroughly investigated in order to take steps to revamp the whole system to improve the conditions of all such homes and provide better facilities to the inmates,” she said in a statement. 

Saxena, on the other hand, has ordered the Chief Secretary to probe into the deaths and the conditions prevailing inside the shelter. 

On August 3, the Legislative Assembly’s Petition Committee, led by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA, Kuldeep Kumar visited Asha Kiran to investigate into the deaths. Kumar accused the LG of not suspending Rahul Agarwal, the administrator of the home. 

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“Rahul Agarwal was SDM in 2016.While he was SDM, a CBI investigation was going on against him. He was also kept suspended for five years. Even after this, the LG gave such a big responsibility to such a corrupt officer. Secondly, why has no action been taken against the secretary of that department till now? Why is LG protecting these officers? Our demand is that action should betaken against such officers as soon as possible.”

Agarwal had been convicted in a bribery scandal. 

The LG office iterated that they had not appointed Agarwal and he was appointed internally by the Department of Social Welfare. Though the office admitted to have posted the IAS official to the department since he was a DANICS(Delhi, Andaman & Nicobar, Lakshadweep, Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli (Civil)Services) officer, it added, “He was appointed as the administrator of Asha Kiran by the minister.” 

The ministry of social welfare, however, has been without charge since former AAP MLA Raj Kumar Anand resigned from the party to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). 

“The Department of Social Welfare does not have a Minister ever since Raj Kumar Anand resigned. CM Arvind Kejriwal even when out on bail, found time to accept his resignation and forward it to LG, but did not deem it important to appoint a new Minister, in a sensitive department that more than any other requires political oversight,” said LG Saxena.