Second wave hits migrant labour hard

Lack of work has forced up to 40 per cent to head back home

Buddha Kumar Chakma, 33, hails from Tripura. He has been an Uber driver in Bengaluru for two years. In the last lockdown, he made no money. This year has been better. “I am able to make Rs 300 to Rs 500 on most days,” he says.

But that is not enough. He lives with three other people in a small room in JP Nagar. His roommates are unemployed. “We manage rent, food and all expenses with my salary. I have no money to send home,” he says. Many migrants like him packed up and went home when word got out of an impending lockdown.

Mannjul Islam, who hails from West Bengal, was involved in quality control work on the Metro line. He returned to his hometown earlier this month. “Even after work resumed in November, we didn’t get our salaries. Eventually, the union got involved and we got our pay in March and April,” he says.

However, when last month’s salary was delayed, he headed home. The contractor eventually paid him 60 per cent of his salary.

“They provide us with housing, but its condition is pathetic. We have to manage everything else with our salary. So if they don’t pay us the whole amount, how will we manage?” he says.

He has four dependents back home. “My brother moved to Mumbai and is now the only earning member,” he says.

No lessons learnt

Close to 40 per cent of the migrant workers have gone back during this lockdown, says Arindam Roy, All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU) member. Well-known columnist Shivasundar says neither the government nor the employers learnt anything from the earlier crisis. “But, the workers have learnt that the government is simply a corporate facilitator,” he says. The situation in the villages is worse, and this stops many from going away, he observes.

Living conditions

Arindam, who largely works with Metro construction workers, says their living conditions are abysmal. “Ten to 15 people are packed in one room, where they cook, sleep, and do all their daily activities. Where is the social distance?” he says.

Most workers believe that Covid-19 is a conspiracy and ignore their symptoms. “For them, the focus is their livelihood,” Arindam says.

With the lockdown extended, many have run out of money and have nowhere to turn. “The ‘One Nation, One Ration’ campaign does not include states such as West Bengal, which makes things difficult for many,” he says. Saqib Idress of Bengaluru for Migrant Workers says people in the slums pool in their money for treatment when one of them tests positive. “Now all the funds are exhausted. There are no Shramik trains to take them home,” he says.

Not a single person from the migrant colonies has been vaccinated so far, he says.

“With cases of black fungus rising, especially among those who have never tested positive, doctors suspect this is due to the humidity that comes from wearing the same masks over and over again,” he says.

The solution?

The government should provide migrants with dry rations and cash compensation, Arindam says.