At noon, Khustabi Begum is sitting on the steps leading to her three-room home, trying to escape the stifling April heat indoors. But respite is hard to come by in Rajendra Nagar, a slum in south Bengaluru. “It’s just as hot outside, but it feels worse indoors. It’s been really hot for the past five or six days, but at least there’s an occasional breeze outside,” says the 36-year-old.
Inside Begum’s dimly lit living room, ceiling fans whir. One corner is stacked with sacks of onions and just outside their home is a vending cart. “My husband sells erulli, belluli [onions, garlic],” she says.
