New Delhi, India – Tabassum Nisha lives in a shanty in a cramped corner of New Delhi’s Malviya Nagar neighbourhood with her five children.
The 38-year-old widow, who worked as a housemaid, used to survive on a monthly income of $50 when she needed more than twice that amount to feed her children.
Barely able to make ends meet, Nisha lost her job when a sudden lockdown was announced by the Indian government in March last year to contain the coronavirus pandemic.
She somehow fed her children during the months-long lockdown, seeking small loans from neighbours and shopkeepers. When they