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Bandra school now a migrant camp
A day after migrants gathered outside Bandra Terminus expecting the resumption of train services to their hometowns, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) accepted
A day after migrants gathered outside Bandra Terminus expecting the resumption of train services to their hometowns, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) accepted the offer made by St Stanislaus School, Bandra to use the premises as shelter for migrants.
“The Cardinal decided to offer this facility to shelter migrants, hence we approached the ward office for the same. Currently we have 15 migrants staying here. Every day two to three more migrants are being added,” said Fr Frazer Mascarenhas, manager at the school. Mascarenhas said they can accommodate 125 people in the school premises.
Some NGOs, police as well as the civic body are bringing in migrants who are in need of a shelter to the school.
Fr Nigel Barett, spokesperson of the Archdiocese of Bombay, said they haven’t yet received a response from Home Guards on their offer to use other schools as relief camps. Cardinal Oswald Gracias, the archbishop of Mumbai, had offered four schools to the Home Guards last week to set up relief centres and camps.
“It has been observed that it is hard to convince migrants to stay at one place even at the camps, which is why they (Home Guards) might have not accepted our offer,” said Barett.
With around 230 migrant labourers staying at Versova migrant camp, volunteers from a nearby church have decided to keep them entertained by arranging movie and songs nights.
Betty Fernandes, parishioner from Good Shepherd church at Four Bungalows, said they were instructed by their parish priest to volunteer at the camp and that they have played two movies over the last three days.
“These migrants are depressed and want to leave the camp because they have nothing to do all day. It is difficult to keep them in the camp as they don’t understand the intensity of the situation,” she said.
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