Hundreds of migrant labourers took to the streets at Paippad in Kerala's Kottayam district on Sunday, defying the lockdown demanding transportation to their home states.
The migrant labourers, who had been residing around Paippad, gathered at the town centre at around 12:30pm. Police teams have arrived at the spot and attempts are on to disperse the crowd.
Talking to Manorama News, Food and Civil Supplies Minister P. Thilothaman said that immediate measures will be taken to resolve the issue after communicating with the district administration. Kottayam district collector is likely to hold a discussion with the protesters soon. Minister Kadakampally Surendran said that attempts will be made to arrange special trains or buses after consulting with the concerned authorities.
All across the country, there has been a rush of migrant labourers attempting to head back home after a national lockdown was imposed owing to the coronavirus. Workers from states like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, who worked in areas like Mumbai and the national capital, found themselves in the literal deep end of affairs. Left with no means to earn a living, they were forced to undertake long journeys on foot to their far-flung homes in the absence of any means of transport. Most of them had to walk hundreds of kilometres to reach their hometown; it was only a day back that the Uttar Pradesh government announced that it has arranged 1,000 buses to ferry migrant labourers stranded at the border districts.
