Unable to find jobs during lockdown 4.0, several migrant labourers in the district are desperate to return to their native States. Though the district administration has arranged food and accommodation for them, most migrant labourers were left jobless during the lockdown.
“At present we have no job or income and we are unable to go home as there are no trains. We were all working before the lockdown, but only a handful of us have jobs now,” said Deepak, who lives with 19 others, all of them from Assam.
Employers’ directive
Many of the labourers employed in tourism-related sectors, MSMEs, and restaurants have been asked to go back by their employers. “My employer said they can easily manage with half the workforce as only parcel service is permitted in restaurants,” said Raj from West Bengal.
According to the district administration, the first batch of migrant workers from the district will leave for their homes on Friday. “A list of 1,400 migrant labourers have been finalised and we are issuing them medical certificates. We have also arranged KSRTC buses to transport them to the Kollam railway station,” said an official.
Kollam has over 9,000 migrant workers from various States and they are currently being monitored by a committee. “The police visit the camps almost daily and the committee members go there on alternate days,” said the official.
