Migrants very often travels from poorer parts of the country to different states in order to earn an income, and have come to be known as “migrant workers”. India witnessed a tragic irony last week when 16 migrants, part of a group of 20 headed towards their villages in Madhya Pradesh and who were hoping to board a “Shramik Special” train, chose to rest on the rail tracks: They were run over by a goods train in Maharashtra’s Aurangabad district.

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Migrants issues in past:

• According to the 2001 Census estimates — figures which are nearly two decades old — there were 41 million migrants from other states in India. Yet, the percentage of inter-state migration in India is low compared to several other countries.
• From the “Marathi manoos” movement in Mumbai from the 1960s onwards to the 2012 exodus from Bengaluru of people from the Northeast, there are innumerable examples of the hatred and intolerance displayed by “localites” towards “migrants”.
• Right before the pandemic hit, the political discussion in our country was around the issue of illegal immigrants. There were protests in Delhi and elsewhere against the recently passed Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, which provides citizenship to illegal immigrants — who are Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Parsi, Buddhist, and Christian from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan, and who entered India before 2014.
• A 2018 World Bank study found that households with some form of identification proof were less likely to have a household member migrate across states, thus suggesting that inadequate portability of identification documents for social welfare benefits deters households from sending migrants across states.
• The lack of policy measures to ensure the welfare of migrants coupled with discriminatory policies surface in the form of much lower rates of inter-state migrants compared to intra-state migrants.

Hardship faced by migrant labourers:

• Between 100 million to 125 million people leave their villages, families and homes to find work far away wherever they can find it; their invisible hands harvest the crops and feed us, clean streets, run factories, build roads, and construct our houses.
• The migrant workers are largely dependent upon casual and daily wage labour and unorganized retail.
• The lockdown would severely affect their livelihood opportunities.
• Citing the uncertainty of employment, and therefore of money and resources, these migrant labourers sought the comfort of the social net in their towns and wanted to return back.
• Most of the migrant workers live in cramped spaces where it would be difficult to maintain physical distancing.
• The lack of hygiene and sanitation facilities makes this section highly vulnerable to such epidemics.
• An analysis of the migration trend shows that a major portion of the rural-urban migration constitutes the migration of men to cities in search of better employment opportunities.
• They are generally the primary breadwinners, and the survival of their families back home is entirely dependent on these migrant labourers. The anxiety of being affected by the virus drove many to return to their families.

Issues faced by migrant lockdown due to Government lockdown:

• The Central government announced the lockdown with just a four-hour notice, making it even harder for the migrant labourers to figure out ways to face the challenge of a lockdown.
• The lockdown has a disproportionate impact on the socioeconomic conditions of the poor and unorganized sector.
• The lack of social security among the poor makes it difficult for them to practice social distancing. They are mostly dependent upon daily and even hourly wage earnings. The lockdown would lead to an income security challenge to them.
• There have been suggestions that given the prior warnings of COVID-19, the situation could have been handled much better. There have been concerns that the decision was arbitrary, unplanned and ill-prepared.
• The lockdown was not accompanied by practical and necessary relief measures.
• The movement of the labourers towards their hometowns was not aided by the government.
• There have been some sections which have argued that if the government was willing to evacuate Indians from other countries, why similar intent is not being shown to make sure that the poor migrant labourers reach their hometown.

Measures needed:

• The proposed quarantine camps must be well equipped with sufficient supplies of essential items for all.
• Governments must use schools and college hostels for the migrants to stay and also utilize the Public Distribution System to provide food.
• Governments must show resolve, commitment, and compassion to deal with the migrant crisis.
• Civil society must come forward and support the most vulnerable.
• For the migrants already enroute to their places, there should be proper screening enroute and they should be informed of the practical health protocols to be practiced during the first 14 days.
• These migrants need to be put under observation, further screening, isolation, testing, and quarantine where required.
• The affected families also have to be given minimum guarantees of food, health, and some income by the government during the lockdown.