At least 300 stranded migrant workers from various parts of the country gathered in front of the Aundh Kutir hospital in Pune as early as 3am to avail a medical certificate to travel back home.
The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC)-run hospital has been authorised to issue health certificates to labourers after checking them for any Covid-19 symptoms. The large crowd in front of the Aundh hospital also consisted of women and children. Laltidevi, a woman from Chappra in Bihar said she came to Pune for a court hearing after her husband died, but has been stuck in the city for over 2 months.
“I had come for 10 days for a court hearing after my husband died while working at a site in Pune. They had called me to collect the insurance money, now it’s been two months since I’ve been stuck here,” she said.
There are several others along with Laltidevi who belong to Chappra in Bihar. Most of them, walked 12 kilometers from Sutarwadi, Pashan area to Aundh. “We started early at 6am to beat the queue,” said Nasseruddin Khan, clutching his copy of the Aadhar card and the travel form close to him.
“Can we get some food? We haven’t had anything to eat since last night. There was no ration and we are all hungry,” he said, pointing to his fellow labourers.
{{/usCountry}}“Can we get some food? We haven’t had anything to eat since last night. There was no ration and we are all hungry,” he said, pointing to his fellow labourers.
{{/usCountry}}According to Khan, the workers who walked with him were either working at construction sites or were involved in odd jobs like painting and denting in the Balewadi, Baner area.
Khan was working on painting interiors and was half way into his contract when the lockdown was announced. He did not get his full payment and now has to return home without the money.
“I have a family back in Chappra and they must be worried about me. Hence, I came here as early as 7am to beat this queue. The faster, I get my medical certificate, the sooner I can go home,” Khan said.
Not everyone in the queue was from Bihar, Vijaya Khidki, a resident of Buldhana, was visiting her son who works at a grocery store in the city.
“I want to go back to my hometown, I had come for a short visit and now I am stuck here. Both my son and I, are leaving Pune at the earliest,” she said.
The husband of a pregnant woman in the crowd asked NV Swami, senior pharmacy officer, incharge of the coordination for issuance of the medical certificate whether he will be allowed to travel to Sangli with his 9-month pregnant wife.
Swami asks him to stay in Pune and takes another set of questions posed by labourers.
“We will first take the temperature and check for any Covid-19 symptoms, only when they are clear will they be issued a medical certificate. We will keep a copy of the certificate and a copy of their Aadhaar card with the mobile number. We started this two days ago, there weren’t so many people at first. The influx of workers has increased three-fold today and I was informed by the security that people have been waiting since 3am outside the gate,” Swami said.
The hospital opens at 8.30am and is open until 1pm every day.