Over 1,000 migrants from Dharavi transported to rly stations

Over 1,000 migrant workers from Dharavi in central Mumbai on Tuesday were transported to railways stations for their onward journey to their hometowns in the northern states amid the COVID-19 lockdown, an official said.

Dharavi, which is one of the severely affected areas in the city, has reported 1,621 coronavirus cases so far.

Unmindful of the social distancing norms, more than 1,000 migrants thronged the area to board civic-run buses, which would take them to railway stations for their journey in Shramik Special trains, the official said.

Workers were headed to their hometowns in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, but only some of them were allowed to board the buses after their documents and medical check-ups were cleared, he said.

There was a heavy deployment of police personnel in the area to control the crowd and maintain law and order, the official said.

Over 2,000 migrant labourers were leaving the area on a daily basis, Dharavi resident and social activist Gulzar Khan said.

Most of these labourers were employed in units that manufactured dress materials, zari, leather and reusable plastic items, he said.

Several workers had started vacating the Kumbharwada area, as they were unable to make ends meet during the lockdown, he said.

Many of the stranded labourers were taken to Lokmanya Tilak Railway Terminus, where they queued up for seats in special trains.

Similar scenes were witnessed at Suncity Ground in Vasai in the neighbouring Palghar district, where thousands of labourers are currently waiting to get seats in special trains.