With the pandemic situation taking more serious turn, the worried labours and migrants – working in industries in and around Hyderabad City, continue to board their native places.
Every day atleast 500 labourers are leaving the city for their native places. Only four days after nearly 100 migrant workers boarded onto the buses to return back to their native places, three more tourist busses full of migrant labourers started their journey from Amma Garden, Rajendranagar today to different destinations.
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Hundreds of laborers from Maharashtra to Odisha are working in several industries in and around the city. Only, the industries in Kattedan under Rajendranagar area carries a chunk of around 20,000 labours to say the least out of which half of them are employed in biscuits factories in this particular area.
Sensing the enormity of the situation most of the labourers – having families back at home in native places, are rushing to board the busses frequently. Tourist busses of 50 seat capacity are frequently carrying the migrant labourers from Amma garden Mailardevpally to different destinations across the country.
These journeys of a thousand miles have begun even before the imposition of night curfew in the state on 20th April. On 21st April, nearly 100 labourers boarded two busses for Odisha and Bihar from Amma Garden Mailardevpally.
Similarly, three more tourist busses carrying labourers of different industries, begin the journey today to Itanagar, Odisha from Amma Garden at around 9.00pm.
“Present situation seems to be very alarming and we can’t afford another exodus barefoot just like last year. Already rail services have closed and only tourist busses are shuttling between the destinations. If the situation turns volatile again and lockdown is imposed, then who will provide us the transportation to drive back to home,” felt Jay Kumar, a labour working in a city based factory.
“These workers are worried over the present situation and are expressing concern over their survival in the days to come due to change of events created out of the second wave of covid-19. This has made them completely unnerved and returning back to their native places,” G.Kurmaiah, Secretary CITU, Rajendranagar.
Unfortunately, unlike last year the laborers are seen travelling to their home on their own expenses and no one from any law enforcing agencies like police and GHMC was seen guiding or arranging them the much needed support to take up the journey.
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“We have booked the tickets online and secured our seats to take up the journey. We are afraid of the situation and hence decided to get back to our native places before the situation takes an ugly turn,” said Pavan, another labour.
