VIPs come and go but there is little change in the circumstances of residents of the eastern suburbs. Smoke continues to make their life miserable, added to it the deadly summer. The shanty dwellers living near the dump yard are paying exorbitant amounts for drinking water despite a court directive stating that every human being has the right to water. Besides, the Congress scion’s visit also resulted in the SPG cordoning off the area, resulting in loss of livelihood for the rag pickers.

Thousands of people live in the areas next to the dumping ground in colonies such as Baba Nagar, Rafiq Nagar, Shivaji Nagar, Bainganwadi etc. Many of these are rag pickers who are directly dependent on the dump yard for their livelihood. After the continuous fire breakouts since January, the BMC suspected sabotage and police complaints were filed twice. But no arrest has yet been made. The BMC’s M/East ward has demolished hundreds of illegal shanties in this area since then and there was speculation that the March fire was started there in retaliation.