Labour shortage cripples construction sector in Andhra Pradesh
CHITTOOR: Reverse migration due to COVID-19 situation has largely impacted construction sector. Till early this year, more than two lakh people, 30 per cent of whom were women, earned their living by working in the sector in Nellore and Chittoor.
With most of them gone, construction activities are continuing with a meagre workforce from urban areas in the two districts.
Workers used to line up in the morning at Gandhi Statue Centre, VR Circle, RTC Circle, Kondayapalem Gate Centre and Podalakuru Centre in Nellore so that they can be picked up for works on projects in Kavali, Gudur, Sullurpeta and Atmakur in the district.
However, this has become a thing of the past since these places now mostly wear a deserted look in the mornings.
Continued lockdown and restrictions have also caused many to not find work. “Around 35-40 per cent of workers were from Srikakulam and had settled in Nellore district. They all went back after relaxations in curbs.
They did not find work for the two months that they were here after lockdown was first imposed, and faced severe hardships,” said K Jamal Basha, a builder in Nellore, adding that they might come back when the situation returned to normal.
Private projects near Nellore have come to a complete halt due to the shortage of labourers.
In Tirupati, works pertaining to some major projects, including Garuda Varadhi and underground cabling for power supply, resumed last month with the available workforce, officials concerned said.