New Delhi, Jul 19 (PTI) Flood-ravaged slum dwellers at the Old Yamuna bridge are staring at a bleak future even though the Yamuna is showing a receding trend in the national capital. Battling the loss of lives and property coupled with the absence of basic facilities, the slum residents are making rounds of the district administration offices to provide them something as fundamental as sanitation and electricity. Shakuruddin, who spent every penny from his savings to buy books for his LLB entrance examination, is devastated as all his textbooks and bags got washed away in the floods.   “My father is a rickshaw-puller and mother works as house help. I want to pursue law and had saved up to buy books for the entrance test. All my books and copies got washed away in the flood and that is my biggest concern right now,” the class 12 government school student told PTI.  “My brother is in class 11. Even his bags and books got washed away. Thankfully, we were able to save our identity proofs and documents," he adds.

Shakuruddin says tents were set up by the administration on Tuesday after 10 families visited the district magistrate's office, adding that lights inside the tents were set up Wednesday morning. "Tents were set up by the administration on Tuesday after we approached the district magistrate. Electricity was also arranged after our repeated requests. Two to three families are lodged in small tents, while four to five families are living in larger ones," he says. The Delhi floods have had a devastating impact with over 26,000 people being evacuated from their homes. The waters inundated key landmarks, roads, monuments and residential areas of the city. The estimated loss of property, businesses and earnings may run into crores.

“We are still facing troubles. How can so many families stay in a single tent? There are no facilities for washroom yet. All of us are defecating in the open, what other choice do we have? Supply of drinking water is also insufficient,” says another slum dweller