The Kerala High Court has asked the State government to express its stance on a study conducted by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) and the National Health Mission which said that migrant workers were returning to their native places on foot because of lack of awareness about the process for getting transportation facilities back home.
The study ‘Let us reach out Kerala’ conducted by the Centre for Livelihoods and Social Innovation under TISS in collaboration with the National Health Mission was brought to the attention of the court by Parvathi Sanjay, amicus curiae in a pending case relating to migrant workers. The study suggested putting in place a standard operating protocol for the travel process.It pointed out that lack of clarity regarding registration and in contacting authorities caused extreme stress to workers. This had led to situations where in the workers ended up crowding in front of police stations or devising plans to walk back home.
