In addition to social ostracism, residents of Juhapura are also ignored by the govt and civic authorities.
AHMEDABAD: In a city like Ahmedabad, which supports nearly four million souls and claims better civic amenities than Hyderabad and Bangalore, some three lakh of its denizens have been forced to live a life of forced isolation.
Post 2002 riots, Juhapura turned into a safe haven for Muslims in Ahmedabad, turning it into the single largest exclusive Muslim neighbourhood in the state. But for rest of the ‘Amdavadis’, Juhapura is a notorious address, unabashedly referred to as ‘Mini Pakistan’.
The ghetto, which formed in the area after the communal riots of 1992 following the demolition of Babri Masjid, is getting further marginalised due to the local mind-set. In addition to social ostracising, residents of the area are also ignored by the government and the civic authorities.
Termed as a “negative area” by all nationalised banks, no loans or credit cards are issued to residents. With no garbage disposal facility, diseases are aplenty, but the closest public health centre is some 10 km away. They pay no taxes and have no facilities.
“Despite the substantial population, absolutely no government facility is available. Students from the area do not get admission in local colleges and decent jobs for well-qualified individuals are hard to get. We are marginalised, but there is no quota for us,” said Roshan Aapa Sheikh, a seventy-year-old woman who has a councillor of the area since the last eight years.
“The panchayat is helpless and the nagarpalika has not even provided drainage lines in the area. With no water supply whatsoever, every house survives on a private borewell,” said Farzana Sheikh a social worker in the area.
“I had applied for a personal loan to the GE Countrywide last year for Rs 50,000. It was rejected. When I asked for reason, they conceded that ‘Juhapura is a negative area’, but refused to give any reason in writing. The same was repeated when I applied for a credit card in SBI despite the fact that I have an account with the bank,” said 25-year-old Sheeba Pathan, a Science graduate from a reputed college in Mumbai and works with a local NGO.
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