Migrant labourers again sprayed with disinfectant

Migrant workers, returning by 'shramik special' trains from Gujarat and Maharashtra, were once again sprayed with disinfectant at the Lucknow railway station.

According to the sources, the sanitation staff of the Lucknow Municipal Corporation (LMC) sprayed disinfectant on the workers, when they came out of the station to board the buses to their respective destinations on Tuesday.

The LMC staff did not give enough time to the workers to even turn around and many of them found the former spraying the disinfectant straight on their faces.

Sources said that the disinfectant, which was Sodium Hypochlorite, was in fact meant for sanitising the buses.

A senior LMC official, when queried in this regard, sought to play down the matter saying that a ''few drops'' might have fallen on some workers. However, he also added ''We will probe the matter.''

It was the second incident when the migrant workers were disinfected by spraying them with what the officials called 'sanitiser'.

Earlier in Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly town, about 250 kilometres from here, a group of migrant workers, including women and children, were also disinfected in the same way.

Many in the group, mostly children, had complained of burning sensation and reddish eyes and started crying.

Sodium Hypochlorite is a bleaching agent used widely in textiles and detergents. It can cause burning of the skin if it is used in concentrated form.

Lakhs of migrant workers have been arriving in the state capital of Lucknow and other towns from Maharashtra, Gujarat and other places by special trains.