The way forward on migrant issues
FRONTLINE|May 22, 2020
Even as Kerala and Odisha have taken proactive measures for migrant welfare in the wake of the lockdown, a permanent solution to migrants’ problems may lie in the implementation of the report of the first-ever task force on migration that was submitted to the Centre in 2017.
S. IRUDAYA RAJAN AND BERNARD D’ SAMI
The way forward on migrant issues

INTER-STATE MIGRANTS, LARGE NUMBERS of whom have been stranded in their cities of work with little means of survival and no way to get back home, are among the worst affected in the nationwide lockdown imposed since March 24. Images of hundreds of them, stranded at various transit points such as bus stops and railway stations, and trying to make the journey back home on foot, have stirred the nation’s conscience. They have also, even if belatedly, raised questions on the responsibilities of States towards internal migrants who help sustain their economies and of the Centre in terms of the effects of its sudden, large-scale decisions on the lives and livelihoods of millions.

States such as Odisha, West Bengal and Bihar, which contribute a large share of migrant workers, have taken some measures to protect migrants in the destination States. Odisha’s model of intervention has been quite effective, with timely implementation made through the State Ministries of Labour, Education, Women and Child Welfare and Panchayati Raj institutions.

This also reveals the structure of the Indian federal system and its powers in ensuring citizens’ rights. The “sending” States are keen to protect their labour from exploitation. For instance, the Department of Non-Resident Keralite Affairs (NORKA) has provided call centre helplines for their migrants in most Indian cities, including Chennai, Mumbai and Delhi. NORKA has also set up call centres for emigrants in the Gulf countries. Many sending States have enabled a help desk for their workers in the capital cities of “destination” States such as Mumbai and Delhi, other State capitals and industrial towns in other States. However, such facilities are limited to the volume of migration that is taking place from the sending to the destination States.

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