New Delhi: As coronavirus-pushed lockdown made thousands of migrant labours to make their way back to their houses from New Delhi, house owners who rented their possessions are in an anxious state. The house-owners who are facing this unprecedented trouble emphasize that they remain helpless to accommodate new tenants as well as pay back the deposit funds to the outgoing tenants.
It was not an ordinary Wednesday for 42-year-old Ritu who owns a three-storey building in Mayur Vihar as eight out of 14 tenants informed her that they want to vacate the house.
As a widower, Ritu has been raising three children including one young girl child. However, her tenants' mass decision to vacate her house had jolted her.
"I am not owning a big apartment. I am marginal house owner having 14 1RK houses in a three-storey apartment in Patparganj village. Most of my tenants are migrant labours from UP. As they are migrants, I have rented my houses at an affordable rate of Rs.4500 each per month. I have collected two months of rent as a deposit. Due to the lockdown, around eight of my tenants have informed that they want to vacate the house. It came as the biggest shock to me, " Ritu told ETV Bharat.
She said that she has to return the two months deposit amount paid by the tenants.
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"I have built this house with a bank loan. Rentals were my only source of income. I am paying EMI of Rs.18,000 per month and I have to take care of my family. As the lockdown forced migrants to leave Delhi, I am under stress. Even as the March month is yet to complete, the vacated tenants have asked me to return the deposit after deducting the March month's rent," she added.
Ritu further said that she could return the amount only on the condition of prior information by at least one month.
"However, the migrants are crying loudly by citing their current situation as they have no jobs and have to walk miles to reach their places. I have assured them that I will return them the remaining deposit in a month. As a few are cashless, I gave my savings to them as they are way back to home," a haunted Ritu explained her issue.
Amresh, another house owner from Chattarpur area said that he has to accommodate new tenants as all the five 1RKs were vacated by the migrant labours.
"I don't want to point the migrants for this trouble. They are way back home to save their lives due to the lockdown. Even before the MHA directed the house owners not to force tenants to vacate the house, we had opened the deal. Also, I have come forward to waive off March month's rent, but, they(migrants) are not ready to accept that. As we are unaware that how long this uncertainty will prevail, we are hopeless to find new tenants," Amresh said.
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Pradeep Kumar, a real estate broker from Laxmi Nagar in the capital city said he slashed down the rental rates and brokerage as hundreds of house owners are in a hurry to find tenants.
"My clients don't have a solid financial background. All are middle class and built their houses with a loan. They raised their houses only by keeping the migrants in mind. However, many of the houses are vacant in East Delhi. As vehicle movements were restricted, no one is ready to hire houses. Even as we have slashed the rental rate to 20 per cent, people are not ready to accommodate," he revealed the plight from his side.
Even as the Government had announced the lockdown for 21 days, labours are hoping that it would be extended further, Pradeep said.
He added, "Labours feel this uncertainty is not temporary. As they predict that there will no job for a prolonged period, they came to the decision of vacating houses."
