TIRUPUR/COIMBATORE: Desperate to get back to their families, migrant labourers from the city have paid Rs 6,500 each to travel to Bihar on private buses from Perumanallur, near Tirupur city. Two buses carrying 30 passengers each left from the city, on Sunday evening.
Speaking to The New Indian Express, a police officer said the workers who left for Bihar are the ones who protested on Coimbatore-Salem National Highway a few days ago. It is said that the workers have employed at Nethaji Apparel Park in Avinashi taluk.
“They approached us with their plans and we got them their ePass from the district administration. Since they were desperate to get home, we arranged two buses from a private operator to take them home. The operator demanded Rs 2 lakh for a bus and due to social distancing norms, only 30 people can travel on a bus. The migrants paid Rs 6,500 each and the buses left for Bihar on Sunday evening on a 2,400 km trip,” the officer added.
Train to Muzaffarpur
A special train carrying 1,140 migrants, including 40 school students, departed from Tirupur Railway Station to Muzaffarpur in Bihar at 4.30 pm, on Sunday. A source from the railways said the special train that has 24 coaches, 18 sleeper compartments and four unreserved compartments arrived at Tirupur railway station by noon, on Sunday.
“Migrants were brought through government buses from the city. All of them underwent thermal screening before boarding the train. They were offered food and water bottles. Around 40 students from Sainik School at Amaravathinagar in Udumalaipet also boarded the train,” sources added.