Gurugram sets up relief camps to stop exodus, but migrants march on

As thousands of migrant workers continue to leave the city to reach their home towns, even if it means walking for hundreds of kilometers to distant towns in Uttar

As thousands of migrant workers continue to leave the city to reach their home towns, even if it means walking for hundreds of kilometers to distant towns in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, the district administration has set up relief camps to provide food and shelter to the workers in hopes to stop the exodus. However, getting the migrant workers to stay put in the city is proving to be an upward task for the officials.

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Officials who had set up a relief camp at Manesar said the workers were not ready to stay at the camp. “On Saturday, we set up a camp with a capacity to accommodate at least 350 people, but only two persons stayed here last night. Instead of staying back at the camp, the workers prefer to eat the food here, take medicines and other essential items before they embark on their journey the towards Kundli–Manesar–Palwal (KMP) Expressway,” Jagram Maan, district development and panchayat officer, said.

The district administration on Saturday had set up relief camps at Manesar, Bhondsi, Bhim Nagar and Qadipur to provide food and shelter to the migrant workers.

Despite many requests by police officers, government officials, the migrant workers were in no mood to stay put in the city as they fear joblessness and starvation in the near future with the national lockdown shutting down the Gurugram-Manesar industrial complex, officials said.

As migrant workers refuse to stay back, officials at the camp continue to give relief material to the migrant labourers that could ease their long and arduous journeys.

To serve the workers, who are trudging on the highway to Jaipur, a 24-hour traditional kitchen at the Manesar camp- the largest relief camp of the four-is churning out allo-poori, pulao and other food items. “Food is being served, water, tea and other refreshments are being given at the camp which also has beds, washrooms and adequate water for people who wsih to stay here,” Bijender Rana, tehsildar, Manesar, said.

Providing relief to all, however, seems to be an upward task for the authorities as a large group of workers could be spotted every few hundred metres on intercity roads such as the Delhi Jaipur highway.

A team of health workers comprising doctors and health workers has been also deployed at the Manesar camp and a medical station with health workers has also been set up at Panchgaon on the KMP expressway where groups of hundreds of workers have converged to get transport to Jaipur, Palwal and other parts of Rajasthan. “We are checking the temperature of workers, giving them medicine for bodyache, mild fever and other minor ailments,” said Dr Praveen Choudhary, who added that they were also providing sanitisers to the migrants.

Amit Khatri, deputy commissioner, Gurugram also visited the Manesar camp Sunday evening. “Adequate arrangements have been made at the camp for migrant workers and I appeal them to stay here. Arrangements to give them medical assistance have also been made and all efforts are being made to help the workers,” he said.

The National Security Guards (NSG) has also set up a kiosk in Manesar offering fruits, water and snacks to the workers. The NSG also provided shoes to those who were walking barefoot.

Resident and social activists also stepped up to provide food and other help to the migrant workers on their way to home. “We are serving food to 500 to 600 workers everyday besides providing them tea and refreshments. I have also commissioned private lorries to drop the workers to Palwal, Rewari and at the KMP expressway,” Subash Chauhan, a Manesar resident, said.

On Sunday, the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) also converted 19 community centres into relief camps for daily wage workers.

Meanwhile, to stop the reverse migration to whatever extent they can, officials of the district administration have also decided to provide meals, groceries and ration to industrial workers staying in around 20 villagers in the Manesar tehsil.

As per one estimate, around one lakh workers stay in villages such as Naharpur Kasan, Bamdoli, Sikandepur Barha, Kankrola, Bargujjar, Khoh, Naurangpur, Aliar, Bas Hariya and others. “Around 20,000 workers in these villages would be really distressed and need help. We have asked the local officials to identify all who need help and we are reaching out to them,” Rana said.

Food cooked at the relief camps set up on Saturday by the district administration is also being distributed to workers living in these villages, officials said.

A number of villagers and Gurugram resident have also come forward to help in running the camps. “I am supplying gas cylinders and biscuits to this camp for free. We will provide more essential items if the need arises,” Devender Singh, who owns a gas agency in Sector 14 said adding that several other residents are contributing in a similar manner.