"Behind the Blue and White" Slums veiled during the BRICS Summit

The recent two day BRICS Summit 2026 saw slum settlements located along Nelson Mandela Marg and Munirka Marg in Vasant Vihar, Delhi, covered with white-purple banners during the dark hours of September 10, 2026. The banners covered the slums from where foreign dignitaries were visiting Delhi.

Slum veiled for BRICS Summit: Residents Raise Concerns, Opposition Slams Ruling Party

The BRICS Summit was organised at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, India, on 12th–13th September 2026, where dignitaries from across the globe participated. However, slum settlements located near DLF Promenade Mall in Vasant Vihar had been covered with 10 ft high blue and white covers. Known as Coolie Camp, there were around 281 households residing there.

Sources said that the entry and exit points were also blocked. Residents remained concerned regarding their daily livelihood, and household activities were affected. The opposition slammed the government, saying that reality would not be changed. Congress MP Pawan Khera lambasted the move, labelling it a superficial attempt to mask urban poverty and economic disparities rather than addressing them. In a post on X, AAP mentioned that, "Covering slums with curtains won't change the reality, just like calling 2.6% GDP growth 7.8%."

Behind the Covers: What Residents said

One of the residents told The Hindu that they were earlier impacted during the G20 Summit as well and that this was not the first time. He said:

“This is not the first time this area has been covered like this. Even earlier, in 2023, when the G20 Summit happened, the basti (slum) was covered with huge green curtains.”

A woman resident mentioned that it was as if the residents were treated as waste. She said:

“Jaise kooda-kachra dhak dete hain, ese hi hamein bhi kooda samajh kar dhak diya hoga [just like we cover garbage, they must have thought of us as garbage, too].”

A sanitation worker also raised concerns about the issue of poverty, stating:

“If the government has a problem with poverty, why isn’t anything being done to eradicate it?”

Further, a vegetable vendor told Brut that he had to take leave and could not earn his daily earnings of ₹300–400. A few residents also mentioned that development was necessary and considered the cover to be a temporary screen. One of them said:

“Look, we live in a slum. If you don't want us to live in a slum, that's a different matter. Give us another place to live, and we'll go there. What is this? You have put up a screen and hidden poor people. The rich people should be visible.”

Also read: BRICS Business Forum 2026: Iran and UAE on Women-led Businesses