In Noida, India, a café run by acid attack survivors has ceased operations due to a lack of cooking gas, threatening their livelihoods amid an energy crisis.
In Noida, a satellite city east of New Delhi, a small café located inside a cricket stadium has had to stop using its fryer, not due to a lack of customers but because of a cooking gas shortage. The café is operated by women who are survivors of acid attacks, who have been socially marginalized but have rebuilt their lives through work. Unfortunately, the ongoing energy crisis is now threatening this hard-won stability.
Mousumi Halder, a 33-year-old survivor of an acid attack in 2015, expressed the challenges they face, stating that they previously could cook throughout the day, but now they cannot serve meals due to the gas shortage. Halder, who has endured multiple surgeries to recover from her burns and was ostracized by her family, found a refuge in the Chhanv Foundation, which supports victims of acid attacks by providing them with jobs in cafés in Noida and Agra, the latter of which is close to the famous Taj Mahal. Their businesses are now at risk due to the scarcity of cooking fuel.
The situation highlights the intersection of social issues and economic vulnerability, as these women, striving for independence and survival, now face the threat of losing their source of income due to a crisis they cannot control. The plight of these survivors exemplifies how broader economic challenges, such as energy shortages, disproportionately impact marginalized communities, further exacerbating their difficulties and stall their recovery and reintegration into society.
