Post the announcement of the 21-day lockdown, as the work across the country came to a halt, the migrant workers lost the jobs, daily wages, and shelters overnight. As a result, the migrant workers in mass started walking towards home causing scenes of mass exodus. Now, the center has asked the states to stop the exodus.
After three days of media pressure, the Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke to the Chief Ministers of the state and urged them to look into the issue and take necessary steps. Earlier in the week, the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced economic relief packages to the construction workers and daily wagers.
Central and State authorities are consistently working on ways to safeguard the livelihood of the people by providing them essential supplies in time. The workers gathered at the Ghazipur were sent to the other side of the Uttar Pradesh border in batches who were determined to walk hundreds of kilometers as there was no transport available. In Thane, 40 migrant workers were caught hiding in truck escaping to Uttar Pradesh.
Home Minister Directs States
The Home Ministry issued an advisory to the State Governments to take steps to ensure an uninterrupted supply of essential services to migrant workers and unorganized sector workers. The advisory also directed the state government to make the workers aware of the steps taken to contain the novel coronavirus outbreak and reduce the panic.
Ajay Singh, the CMD of SpiceJet, has announced that the airline is ready to arrange flights from Delhi and Mumbai to Patna to reduce or put a pause on the suffering of migrant workers. JP Nadda, the BJP National President also urged his party workers to help the migrants.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to K Palaniswami and BS Yediyurappa, Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka to ensure strict lockdown and provide an uninterrupted supply of essential services across the state. The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) said that it is interacting with the retailers and e-commerce companies to ensure the supply. Several e-commerce firms have assured deliveries of essential goods.
Industry body Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) alleged that the telecom operators are facing issues in maintaining consistent networks as their employees are harassed by the police in some states.
