After successfully bringing back stranded Uttar Pradesh students from Kota, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has directed officials to prepare a road map to bring back tens of thousands of migrant workers from the State stranded in other States and have completed 14-day quarantine.
“Those labourers of UP who have completed 14-day quarantine in other States will be brought back in a phased manner. The officers should prepare an action plan for the same,” Yogi said while addressing the lockdown review meeting at his official residence here on Friday.
The Yogi Government’s decision could create more trouble for Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who has refused to even bring back his State students from Kota and is facing strong criticism from Opposition parties.
Yogi said a list will be furnished having all the details of the labourers followed by screening and testing by concerning States to send them to UP border from where they will be dispatched to their respective districts by bus.
“The concerned nodal officers of different States should prepare a list of the people who want to return to UP and start making arrangements for their return. These shelter homes should be sanitised and community kitchens should be set up to quarantine labourers from other States. The nodal officers should contact the respective States and migrant workers who want to return,” the CM told the officials.
He said that the adequate number of shelter homes and centres should be readied for 14-day quarantine of the migrants. After institutional quarantine, they will be sent to their homes with ration kit and Rs 1,000 as sustenance allowance, he pointed out.
Earlier last week on the directive of the CM around 10,500 students from Uttar Pradesh who are studying in Kota Rajasthan were brought to the State. Around 300 buses were put into service. Later these students were asked to go in for quarantine in their houses for next 14 days.
Political parties in Uttar Pradesh have been asking the Yogi Government to bring back these labourers.
“We support the UP Government in bringing back students from Kota. The migrant workers should also be brought back who are suffering because they are not getting food and other essential items,” UP Congress State president Ajay Kumar Lalu said.
Early this week around 1,000 laborers from Uttar Pradesh who have got stuck in Jammu & Kashmir had appealed to the Chief Minister to make arrangements for their return to their villages as they have run out of money.
Suresh Kumar, who hails from Bahraich reached Kashmir in the first week of March and had earned around Rs 3,500 when lockdown was announced. Since then he is putting up in a Government building in north Kashmir along with 400 non-local labourers from various States.
“All the money I had earned have exhausted. Government should have given us three days to reach to our homes before announcing lockdown,” he said.
He has been lodged in a shabby room along with 20 non-local labourers. “There is no hygiene here. Labourers are not safe because we are not maintaining any distance. We fear we may get infected,” Suresh said.
“Our families are worried about our safety. We are even not able to make a video call to our families due to low internet speed. We want to leave for our home as soon as possible,” Kumar said and requested the UP Government to take them back.
He said that his brother told him that the Yogi Government had brought students back from Kota. “If they can be brought back to UP why cannot we,” asks Kumar.