Stay here, work for your state, Nitish tells migrant workers

Chief minister Nitish Kumar Friday sought to allay apprehensions among migrant workers over the loss of livelihood saying “all those willing to stay back will be

Chief minister Nitish Kumar Friday sought to allay apprehensions among migrant workers over the loss of livelihood saying “all those willing to stay back will be provided employment as per their skill sets.”

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The chief minister, who was interacting with the migrants put up at various quarantine centres through video conference for feedback on available facilities, appealed to them to stay in the state and participate in the development of their home state.

He also directed officials to prepare job cards for all those who have returned to the state amid the lockdown and want to stay back with a view to providing suitable employment opportunities matching their skill profile. “Immediate efforts must be made to promote and revive labour intensive industries, where a large number of them could be deployed,” he said.

Bihar has seen a reverse migration on an unprecedented scale since the lockdown began.

‘“There is no scarcity of work here. Deploy your labour and skill sets to participate and contribute in Bihar’s development,” the CM told migrant workers.

Talking to Rambali, a migrant worker from Gurugram staying in Bettiah, who is also skilled in the job of manufacturing paver blocks, the chief minister said that paver block industry has a huge potential in the state as it was being used in various development works initiated by the government as part of the jal-jeevan-hariyali drive. “As for women workers, they can be associated with Jeevika for suitable livelihood,” he said.

During the video conference, the chief minister interacted with inmates in 20 quarantine centres in 10 districts to enquire about the facilities and have a first-hand view of the arrangements, even as he impressed upon them on the need for spending the mandatory isolation period, with proper social distancing norms, at the quarantine centres, which was in their best interest and also for their immediate family and society at large. “Today, this is the only way to fight the pandemic and contain its spread,” he said.