Migrant Labourers in the Lakhs Stranded across India Struggle to Survive Lockdown, Yearn for Home

Guwahati, April 19, 2020:

For at least 4 million or so migrant workers from Assam who are stranded in other states, it is absolutely a matter of survival -- both for themselves and their families. The condition of the workers, who left the state in droves in search of the proverbial green pasture for themselves and their loves ones, has now turned dire.

For 27-year-old Nuruddin, a labourer who hails from Assam’s Goalpara district who has been stranded in Mizoram capital Aizawl, abundance of groceries (provided by his employer) cannot ease the worries of his family from his mind.

He went to Aizawl in February 28 but after the lockdown was called abruptly on April 24, he was helpless to return home and was forced to stay in Aizawl. Engaged in construction work in a local Church, that is where he lives now; because of lockdown restrictions, movement outside is restricted.

ALSO READ: Inter-State Movement not Allowed for Migrant Labourers Stranded amid Lockdown, Says Centre

Confined to a room in the first floor of an Aizawl Church with a single colleague as his roommate amid the feared lockdown, this labourer had to wait for a while before news of his plight reached the ears of people who could change things for the better.

Debabrata Saikia, a Congress leader from Assam, brought the issue to the limelight, and subsequently provisions were made to cater to the basic needs of these migrants who are stuck. However, they are now stuck in limbo, with a return home seeming more and more a distant dream as the COVID-19 continues its destructive purge.

Fear still prevails in the minds of the Assam migrants stuck in Aizawl who have overstayed their welcome. Due to leave a month ago after completing their work, they have apprehensions in the unfamiliar territory (Nuruddin attests that this is first trip to Mizoram).

[caption id="attachment_57524" align="alignnone" width="660"] Scenes from the window[/caption]

“We came for only a few days”, Nuruddin says, adding that his small sojourn has turned into an insufferable wait as he spends his time browsing the internet for news from Assam. “What can you do?”, he asks, “there is no other thing for us to do here. So, we just browse the news for updates of the situation outside.”

Across Aizawl, Nuruddin and 6 other migrants are similarly “trapped” and separation from their families is what rankles the most.

“The family is struggling to survive. We are eating and sleeping in the Church and the locals have been kind. Although our employer has given us money, our main concern is for the family. My wife and two-year-old infant are alone at home.”

“My parents and wife are in Goalpara. We are unable to find employment now; we are surviving on our savings and if we do not work, we will not get paid, that is the main concern”, Nuruddin’s 22-year-old friend Abul Hussain, who is confined in the same room, pipes in.

These labourers, like so many others, find themselves lodged firmly in the middle – on one hand there is the fear of the coronavirus that is spreading across the world at an unprecedented rate, and on the other, there is the basic human need for food, drink, acceptance, and love.

Anand Prakash Tiwari, the IPS Officer manning the control room of the Assam Police where the calls for help are logged, informs us that such migrants are uncountable and because a clear-cut census does not exist, it is impossible to track all of them down. “When the trains bringing those who were outside arrived in Assam, almost 25 lakh people disembarked. It is possible that several lakh more of them are out there”, Tiwari informed us.

 Migrant Tensions across India:

Migrant labourers, be it in Assam or Kanyakumari, continue to feel the heavy blow of the lockdown that has paralyzed their lives. Tensions came to the fore in Mumbai – the epicentre of the virus – when disregarding Government rules, thousands thronged to demand an instantaneous end to their plight. Stuck between hunger and the COVID-19, thousands congregated in Bandra and demanded that they be sent back home.

In Delhi also, a cluster of migrant labourers stood in wait ignoring the lockdown, waiting for the coming of the promised “good days”. Perhaps, they still are unable to fathom how lives have turned so bleak in the blink of an eye.

Several undertook perilous journeys on the roads that would either lead them home or to ruin. After reports of migrants being sprayed with “disinfectant” in UP, it became certain that the migrant class was in for the long haul. Even in the Relief Camps that are being set up for these migrants, some of them have been extremely unlucky. After a 42-year-old migrant died in Rourkee, his family accused that he was suffering due to starvation.

At the same time, after employers shut their shops and the entire country fled indoors to escape the pandemic, workers with no savings were forced to take drastic steps.

A Meghalaya man, who had gone to Agra to eke out a living and to forget a sinful past, committed suicide after the abruptly called lockdown broke him down emotionally.

Government’s Response:

Earlier today, the Government of India issued a notice wherein it was stated that the migrants would be able to slowly return back to their vocations after April 20 when lockdown rulesare laxed. However, it is subject to many conditions. Most importantly, however, they cannot return to their homes. Lakhs upon lakhs are separated from their families, which surely stings them and has driven many to undertake drastic steps.

Nuruddin: “My family is in Assam, and I am here. At this point of time, my chief concern is my family. I came to Mizoram to earn money because we do not have any. Now, they do not have any and I hope my family is not starving.”

"It may be noted that there shall be no movement of labour outside the state/UT from where they are currently located," the Government advisory said.

"The migrant labourers currently residing in relief/shelter camps should be registered with the concerned local authority and their skill mapping be carried out to find out their suitability for various kinds of work," it added.

The Numbers in Assam:

The number of destitute in Assam who have ventured forth to fend for their families is indeed staggering. When the State Government opened helplines to people who wanted Government assistance to deal with poverty, as many as 9 lakh missed calls were registered. Over 4 lakh of those calls have been “verified” so far, informs Himanta Biswa Sarma, Assam’s one-man task force against the virus. Indeed, it is a baffling scenario in Assam that has more often than not preoccupied itself with identifying (and evicting) the non-khilonjiya (or non-indigenous).

The Minister has gone on to suggest that if the families of these people is taken into the equation, we could possibly be staring at mammoth numbers as large as 15 lakh. All these people who have appealed for help amid the helplessness of the lockdown, could potentially be eyeing a return back home, which could be an alarming development for the Health Department of Assam.

If we also take their families into account, Sarma said, the numbers could rise exponentially — upto 15 lakh. “We urged the 4 lakh people who have been verified to fill up their forms. 2,17,220 people among those have filled up their forms. 50,000 people among those will be provided with something after verification”, he said. Sarma has said that these people will receive financial subsistence to tide them over the situation.

Several of them are now using social media to connect with the administration, and several have also been helped financially. However the chasm between the classes has been exposed in these dire times, and only time will tell when this divide will mend. But for now, one thing is certain: history will remember.

Support Inside Northeast (InsideNE), an independent media platform that focuses on Citizen-centric stories from Northeast India that are surprising, inspiring, cinematic and emotionally relevant.