At 7.30 am on Tuesday, an eight-month-old girl lay curled up with her 80-year-old grandmother on a cot, trying to beat the heat and catch a breeze. They’ve been sleeping outside their flat since Monday afternoon as their new home has had no electricity since they moved in around 1.30 pm.The girl’s father, Veerchand (38), is waiting for their electricity meter to be fixed. Inside their 1BHK flat are jute and plastic bags filled with all their belongings, a stroller, and utensils.The family of five is among the 700-odd jhuggi dwellers who were told to vacate their homes near the Prime Minister’s residence on Lok Kalyan Marg in the heart of the Capital and shift to DUSIB flats in Savda Ghevra. The resettlement colony is 45 km away in Northwest Delhi. For 27-year-old Preeti Bansiwal, shifting to Savda Ghevra cost her an admin job in Khan Market. (Express Photo by Praveen Khanna)The families were served eviction notices in February by the Land and Development Office (L&DO) of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), which asked them to take possession of allocated flats in Savda Ghevra.This was also upheld by a single bench of the Delhi High Court earlier this month. The residents challenged this, contending that the relocation will deprive them of their livelihoods as most are engaged in blue-collar jobs in the vicinity of the camps near the PM’s residence.The evicted dwellers were to inform court on Tuesday if they’re agreeable to the appointment of a court commissioner to inspect basic amenities available at the site, but the hearing was adjourned. Meenakshi (49) is among those who purchased water for Rs 50 for drinking. (Express Photo by Praveen Khanna)The dwellers include families from Bhai Ram Camp, DID Camp and Masjid Camp. Around 200 have taken possession letters so far.Story continues below this adVeerchand, originally from Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh, but born and brought up in Bhai Ram Camp, works as housekeeping staff in a school in Laxmi Bai Nagar, near INA, earning Rs 14,000 a month.He used to cycle to his workplace which was 3 km away. Following the shift, he will now have to leave his new house around 4.30 am, take an e-rickshaw and three buses to reach — a commute, he estimates, will take three hours each way.“I’m planning to look for work nearby now, otherwise I’ll end up spending Rs 5,000 just on the commute. How will I take care of my daughter and my family with the money that’s left?” he questions, fanning his mother and daughter. Meenakshi says the family is happy and hopes to build a new future here. (Express Photo by Praveen Khanna)He claims that he applied for the electricity meter two months ago, but is yet to receive a connection. “… We have gone to the officials, if they won’t listen, who will?”Story continues below this adHe says they shifted as the court asked them to. Wahan se bhi gaye, yahan se bhi jaayenge toh phir kahan jaayenge. (If we are removed from there and then here too, where will we go?),” he asks.When The Indian Express contacted him in the evening, he says officials had assured him the issue would be fixed by night.A DUSIB staff present on site, on the basis of anonymity, says the family did not inform them before shifting. “When a family applies for an electricity meter, it is provided within five-six days. If it isn’t, a generator is set up until the meter is fixed. We have around 1,500 flats ready to accommodate all the dwellers,” the official says, adding that a total of 216 families have taken possession letters till now.Around 8 am, Deep Gehlawat (20), a water supplier, cycles into the colony in his e-rickshaw mounted with a 500-litre white water tank. “Paani lelo (Come get your water),” he shouts out and families rush out with used plastic and oil containers to fill up RO water for Re 1 per litre.Story continues below this ad Veerchand and his family sit on a cot outside the flat on Tuesday morning, waiting for an electricity connection. (Express Photo by Praveen Khanna)Meenakshi (49), who used to live in BR Camp, is among those who purchased water for Rs 50 for drinking. The family is using tap water for washing and cleaning.She says she visited 13 times before finally shifting. “We got the keys on March 5 but we were waiting for the court order. I came four-five times to look for a school for my children. I secured their admissions to one nearby and then we finally decided to shift here,” she says. Her children are in class 7 and 11.A primary school building has stood on the site for the past seven years but remains non-functional. Nearby, a vacant plot marked for a secondary school sports a rusted signboard. Veerchand (38) and his family of five moved to Savda Ghevra on Monday afternoon. (Express Photo by Praveen Khanna)According to the DUSIB official, the school did not start as there were no students. “When people start shifting here in large numbers, the primary school will begin functioning. Proposals will also be sent for construction of the secondary school. But there are schools nearby as well,” the official adds.Story continues below this adMeenakshi’s husband, Amit Bhati (45), works in Gurgaon in the cafeteria of an FMCG company. Like Veerchand, he, too, will spend a good two hours getting to his workplace.“Earlier he used to take a single metro. Now, he will have to switch between the Green, Pink and Yellow lines… that’s the only challenge,” she says.Meenakshi is also hopeful of the shift: “Jhuggiyon ka dhaba hata humare upar se (The tag of being jhuggi dwellers is now removed from us).”“We spent our lives there, but our children were not comfortable. My daughter used to say she would get a new place as soon as she got a job because there was excessive gambling and liquor at every corner inside the camp,” she says.Story continues below this ad“We’re happy here though. There are many guards as well… We all cried before coming here, but we hope to build a new future.”For 27-year-old Preeti Bansiwal, shifting to Savda Ghevra cost her an admin job in Khan Market. “It would have been very far,” she sighs. “I’ll try finding a job here. My father, who is a private driver, now leaves early in the morning as he needs to reach Green Park for duty,” she adds.Despite the emotional weight of leaving behind a place where her family had lived for nearly five decades, Preeti says the shift brought relief rather than anxiety. “It was becoming congested there and the atmosphere often made me feel uncomfortable. It feels more secure here,” she adds.