Arrange the travel of Migrant Workers Free of Cost - CITU writes to the Prime Minister

Dear Prime Minister Sir,

The trade union movement has been demanding since the beginning of the lockdown period to arrange for return of the stranded migrant workers from different parts of the country to their home states through special trains and other means of transportation, depending on the distance to be travelled. This had become the urgent necessity since following lockdown, crores of migrant workers scattered all over the country were thrown into unimaginable miseries, as they have lost their jobs, earnings and having been evicted from their residences, they find themselves a non-entity, despite being the most productive workforce in industries and services both in unorganized and organized sector. And such a situation had also arisen owing to Govt directives through both Home Ministry’s and Labour Ministry’s Orders on non-termination of employment, full payment of wages and non-eviction from respective staying places during the lockdown period were allowed to be desperately violated by the authorities concerned to the advantage of the employers and landlords.

Although quite late, resulting in so many casualties among the destitute workers and their family members, we welcome the recent move of the Govt on the eve of third phase of lockdown in the matter of arranging special trains for the movement of stranded migrant workers as noted in abovementioned orders of the Railway Ministry.

At the same time we like to point out that it is totally unjust, rather a cruelty to make stranded migrant workers pay the train fare for availing those special trains to return to their home states. These workers, through the process of 38 days lockdown have lost everything they had and have been passing days in virtual starvation, many along with their family members.

Therefore, CITU urges upon you to please intervene so that the 1)stranded migrant workers are allowed to travel Shramik Special Trains free of cost and central govt must bear the financial responsibility, 2) workers on movement in trains should be provided food, safety gears and medical attendance, 3) Such Shramik Special Trains are provided for all destinations wherefrom the migrant workers have come to serve in other states simultaneously and such movement process of the stranded workers should not suffer owing to laxity from any end either from central govts or state govts- both the state of origination and the recipient states.

With regards,
Yours sincerely,
(Tapan Sen)
General Secretary 

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