ABSTRACT
The extent and magnitude of homelessness in major urban Indian cities has risen enormously in the past few decades. This chapter examines the lived experiences of homeless people who were found on the streets in debilitating conditions, referred and brought by state officers and community members to a civil society organization called 'Earth Saviours'. It reports on the lived experiences of six homeless adults including both men and women who were located on the streets of Delhi by the volunteers of 'The Earth Saviour'. The politicization of homelessness in India is examined by exploring themes in the literature that highlight: how homelessness is conceptualized, the denial of the rights of citizens, the criminalization of the homeless as beggars, the lack of access to appropriate shelters and affordable housing, and the continual displacement of people living on the streets by government officials. Becoming homeless also means losing rights to citizenship.
