KOCHI: Chinnapandi, a 65-year-old farmer from Theni in Tamil Nadu, had quit farming and come down to Kerala in search of work. He used to make around Rs 800 per day doing jobs from gardening to construction. However, he has been facing a dry spell in the recent weeks. Unable to afford the rent, Chinnapandi spends his night on the streets.
‘Seasonal circular migrants’ as researchers call them, labourers like Chinnappandi can be found at many junctions in the city. Most of these labourers reach Kerala for short stay, usually two to four weeks. Many of them seek shelter on the verandahs of the shops, bus stations, shopping complexes, pavements, traffic circles and the medians.
According to Binoy Peter of the Centre for Migration and Inclusive Development (CMID), these labourers are forced to choose the roadside and median because of the exorbitant rent in the state. “If scrutinised closely, one will be able to see that only a small portion of these labourers sleep in the open places. Others stay in lodgings by paying exorbitant rents. It should be noted that there have not been any reports about these short stay labourers creating problems,” he pointed out.
“These people come to Kerala since they are left with no survival options back home. Spending too much on rent proves to be non-beneficial for them. Besides they prefer to stay at a location near the pick-up points. If a labourer turns up late at the pickup point, he or she may end up getting no jobs for the day. It will be difficult for these labourers to survive for more than two or three days without a job,” he said.
Binoy said the problem can be solved to some extent if the government enforces rules through the local bodies. He said building temporary shelters for labourers might not be effective. “Government should regulate rent and the number of people who can be accommodated in a particular area. If such a law is enforced the footpaths and medians will be clear of these homeless migrants,” Binoy said.
Temporary shelters
Temporary shelters that were built in other big cities have not been successful, points out CMID programme director Vishnu Narendran. Labourers will not use such a facility if it is too far from the location from where they are picked up for a job. The shelter built at Surat was a big failure since it was far away from the pickup point.