Migrants ‘boycott’ food; authorities counsel them

Migrant workers’ hopes of returning to their hometowns after the 21-day lockdown ended on April 14 were dashed when the state government, and later the Centre, announced

Migrant workers’ hopes of returning to their hometowns after the 21-day lockdown ended on April 14 were dashed when the state government, and later the Centre, announced an extension. This has led to unrest among the migrant workers staying in shelters in various parts of the state. In some shelters, the ‘homesick’ migrants boycotted lunch on Tuesday after the announcement of the extension of the lockdown till May 3. Authorities at these shelters have now begun counselling the workers.

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A majority of the migrant workers stranded in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region are from Uttar Pradesh (UP) and other states in north India. Around 75,000 migrants and homeless are living in Mumbai at various shelters arranged at schools, colleges and community halls.

“There is unrest among them, especially after the announcement of the extension of the lockdown and the incident in Bandra. More than food and shelter, they want to go back to home amid the uncertainty owing to the pandemic,” said an official from the Mumbai suburban collectorate, requesting anonymity. Ninety such migrants, mostly from UP, are living at Uttar Pradesh Bhavan in Bandra (East). An official said that they are eagerly waiting for the lockdown to end so that they can return home.

On April 14, after hearing the announcement of the extension of the lockdown till May 3, many workers became restless. At a shelter in Nashik, the migrants announced a boycott of lunch. “We had to convince them with the help of a psychiatrist only then food was served at 3pm. They have not complained about the arrangements but they have become homesick. We tried to tap the possibility of finding them work but questions arise about the possibility of spread of the virus,” said a senior officer looking after the arrangements at the shelter.

At shelters in Palghar and Talasari too, labourers refused to dine. It was only after being counselled by the district collector and other officers, the workers agreed to have dinner. “We have been regularly arranging counselling and meditation sessions for them. We have more than 5,000 labourers from 19 states put up in government and private shelters,” said an official from Palghar district collectorate.

Maharashtra has 4,618 shelters in various districts with arrangements for 5.72 lakh migrants. The state government shoulders responsibility for their meals, while NGOs donate toiletries, clothes and other essentials. The state government has allocated ₹90 crore for the arrangements.

In Beed, there are around 1,266 migrants stranded from various states. The officer-in-charge at one of the shelters said they organise devotional activities like bhajans and kirtans to keep the labourers engaged.

Deepak Nagargoje of Shantivan, an organisation working for cane-cutters, said that more than 9,000 workers are waiting to return home. “More than 2.70 lakh returned home before the lockdown. The rest are facing problems and want to go back at the earliest,” he said.