The Sri Nathji Nishulk Jal Sewa which provides drinking water for pedestrians through its network of water huts in summer… opened its first three night shelters on MG Road. Bankey Lal Maheshwari, chief of the SEWA told Agratoday.in "the poor and the homeless have no place to go and are left to fend for themselves in these chilly nights. We have therefore opened three shelters for them on the main M G Road. Three more would be opened shortly. At our shelters there is bon-fire, fresh quilts, gaddas and pillows. We also have provision for morning tea and some gur-chana."

Maheshwari said for 30 years his Water service was doing this work with public support.

The Agra Municipal Corporation is also gearing up to run at least three shelters. The Ganesh Sewa and the various service clubs have also announced plans to open shelters for the poor as winter advances.

Being a major trading centre of agricultural produce and a hub of medical services, a large number of people daily come to Agra from the vast rural hinterland. "Some do not have the resources, others miss the bus or train and left to look for night shelter. At the SN Medical College, the Mental Hospital, some stations we have our night shelters," Bankey Lal Maheshwari said.

As the mercury drops and the shivering fog envelopes the city in the evenings, the homeless rush to the nearest shelter put up by Sri Nathji Nishulk Jal Sewa, which provides them a quilt and a cosy bed to sulk merrily in the comfort of a bonfire.

Following the lead taken by Sri Nathji Jal Sewa, other groups are planning to put up makeshift centers along busy roads where the poor can spend time for free.