KOCHI: As the heat of the demonetisation drive percolated into the construction sector, thousands of migrant labourers, who constitute 45.9 per cent of the total workforce in the sector, have begun to leave the state. The contractors are forced to cut down the labour strength.
“I was supposed to go by the Guhawati Express on Tuesday. But the general compartment was packed and I was not able to board the train. Even police officials were there in the station,” said Om Prakash from Assam. Nearly 100 migrant workers from Assam boarded the Guhawati Express from Aluva on Tuesday.
According to a study conducted by the Gulati Institute of Finance and Taxation (GIFT) two years ago, the migrant population in Kerala is 23.5 lakh. The number is expected to touch 34 lakh in 2016. “Most of them are working in unskilled sector. Some others depend on construction sites for a livelihood,” the report said.
Labourers from Assam and Bengal constitute the major part of migrant workforce in the state, and those in the construction sector are facing the job cut. “Last Monday, our employer asked 17 of us to go on leave, saying that he is not able to pay the wages because of the cap on daily withdrawal. He is yet to clear 18 days due, which will come to Rs 14,400. I decided to go home as there is no point in remaining here without cash,” said Mysul, a Bengal native.