KOTTAYAM: Taking a cue from the mass exodus in New Delhi in the wake of the 21-day nationwide lockdown, more than 2,000 migrant workers in Payippad — one of the prominent settlements in Kottayam district — took to the streets on Sunday demanding immediate arrangements to travel back to their native places.
The imbroglio, which kept the authorities concerned on tenterhooks for nearly three hours, could have escalated but for the district administration’s timely intervention. The protests, which began around 11am, subsided by 2pm after District Collector P K Sudheer Babu and district police chief G Jaidev spoke to the representatives of the migrant workers.
Defying the stringent restrictions, the labourers --- mostly from West Bengal and Assam --- blocked the Changanassery-Mallappally Road in the beginning. As more workers staying in and around the village joined the protest, the situation seemed to slip out of control and warranted higher authorities’ immediate intervention. After the attempts made by the local police and the Payippad panchayat authorities to pacify the protesters failed to yield any result, the collector and district police chief arrived on the scene.
Local residents said the workers got frustrated after noticing that none of the grocery shops was opened on Sunday. Their resentment snowballed into mass protest after the panchayat officials refused to intervene in the issue.
“Inmates of a majority of the camps have been starving since Saturday evening and it is learnt they had lodged a complaint regarding the matter with the panchayat. Their despair gave way to anger as they were denied food on Sunday morning as well,” said a local resident.
The collector, who dismissed the allegation, said the district administration had put in place all arrangements for their food. “They didn’t want cooked food. Hence they wanted us to make arrangements for them to get back home which we can’t provide in the time of lockdown. We convinced them about the situation and assured them to supply all essential things in the camps for them to cook on their own,” the collector said. It is estimated that nearly 3,500 migrants are in Payippad.
CREATING AWARENESS
The state has decided to circulate brochures and short videos in Hindi, Oriya and Bengali to create awareness among the migrant workers
Health workers fluent in Hindi have also been roped in to improve the engagement
Min: Welfare of migrant workers will be ensured
Civil Supplies Minister P Thilothaman, who visited the migrant workers’ settlement in Payippad, said the government would provide all assistance to them. “I’ve already directed the officers concerned to initiate urgent steps to allay their concerns. If they don’t like Kerala style food, we’ll provide them with essential items to cook on their own,” he said.