In Kerela, several steps have been taken during the lockdown to alleviate the problems of migrant workers and provide them basic amenities and facilities. The nationwide lockdown imposed to combat the Corona pandemic, many workers in Kerela were unable to return to their home states. The government is providing facilities for their entertainment like Television and carrom board to such workers.
The carrom board is making life a little easier for the considerable number of migrant workforce in Perumbavoor, Kerala. Approximately, 470 million migrants across India are on ongoing struggle with malnutrition, disease, violence, humiliation and unemployment due to the nationwide lockdown. Howbeit, the Perumbavoor authority is trying to entertain the migrant and stranded workers.
Kerala has emerged as a role model for other states in tackling terror-ticket migrant workers. The Ernakulam Rural Police fixed five television sets with cable connections and gave 10 carrom boards at the Bhai Colony. The colony houses encompasses 4,000 workers who are largely from Odisha, West Bengal and Assam.
The initiative is part of the state administration’s endeavour to provide some relief to the migrant workers who are away from their families by providing them with food and shelter as long as the lockdown continues.
In order to address the anxiety of the migrants, the Kerala administration, police and volunteer networks came into action. To coordinate with district officials for immediate relief operations a three-member panel was formed.
As per the official estimates, the state had heretofore offered Free food and shelter to almost every migrant from 27 March, through 5,000 relief camps and over 200,000 community kitchens. The migrants were also offered dry ration so that they could cook for themselves.
To address the multilingual messages assuring aid, the state and the non-profit organizations, also formed WhatsApp groups apart from opening call centres in at least five languages. Officials said they have received over 100,000 calls so far in Ernakulam alone. A mobile hospital was arranged in Ernakulam. The state also provided cooking fuel and helped the migrants recharge their mobile phones.
In Perumbavoor, where round 9,000 are migrants, the police organised a route march to demonstrate their resolve to impose the restrictions. The relief measures includes 10 carrom boards and five 32-inch television (TV) sets that can play movies on pen drives.
C. Jayakumar, The circle inspector of police said, “If we hadn’t kept them indoors, it’d have been a calamity for everyone,” said Shereena Basheer, the president of a panchayat in the region. “We had received an intelligence report that if they were not given some activity in the daytime, they might venture out on to the streets. So we decided to give them 10 carrom boards and five TV sets to entertain them. They are so much into the board game that they have asked for more boards”.
