[1]Owing to the preceding announcement of the lockdown due to COVID-19, the magnitude of the evacuation migrant labourers was left abruptly displaced. Pandemic crisis rattled the conscience of the nation.
Haunting scenes of individuals opposing the law upholding offices, informational to keep secure remove from each other and not swarming at transport and railroad station and endeavouring to walk hundreds of kilometres within the nonappearance of any transport were due to regulatory insufficiencies.
[2]Though, in the current scenario of COVID-19 when talk about the extremities and adversities facing the problems – most rural –urban migrant workers in the informal or unorganised sectors. They have precarious lives and livelihoods and they in villages from saving‘s their meagre everyday earnings allowance.
[3]With this on Monday the Gujarat high court took suomoto in regards to the reports published in sufferings of migrant workers, their pain and hunger during lockdown.
“It appears that people at large are hungry and gowning. People are without any foodstuff or shelters. It seems that it is the outcome of the complete lockdown.”
[4]Whatever a little help the poor people used to receive from the NGO’s, other charitable institutions and volunteers, have come to a grinding halt.
More than two hundred people live on footpaths near the Ellisbridge have been confirmed to have had no bits of food over the last four days. The volunteer is reported to have brought them food but since the complete lockdown. — Only that’s avoided, “observed the Justice J.B.Pardiwala and Ilesh J Vora division bench.
In this case, the court recapped and reminded to that “it is the paramount responsibility of the state authorities to ensure that its citizen to not go Hungry or Gnawing for food.”
“While the state government is doing its best to combat the situation, we find that something is wrong somewhere. It appears that there is no proper coordination between the various departments of the state government, what is most essential now is a more human approach or touch,” the court noted.
Looking into this problem, the bench ordered that appropriate arrangements should be made for the distribution of food packets for the town of Ahmedabad areas on the outer skirts as well as other sections of Gujarat state.
Such directives were given on the basis of Ahmedabad Morror’s news story of 11 May. As “Give us food or kill us now”, which stated that “more than 200 people –“daily wagers and their families –who have been living on footpaths near Ellisbridge say they have not had a morsel to eat for the past four days, volunteers used to bring their food , but since total Lockdown , even that has clogged .
In the said news, as the stated facts says that the bench also took notice of the news report about the sufferings of stranded workers.“It seems that the plights of migrant workers have come into the scenario, where these migrant workers’ are adversely miseries and travails the most. They are very frantic and desperate to go back to their home –to their native states across the country, the court said.”
Although appreciating the initiatives of the state authorities to move migrant workers to their respective states by trains, buses, etc., the bench said they had to struggle like something for hours before they could enter the train or bus in this scorching weather of nearly 45 degrees together.
It is the duty of the “state authorities any modalities or arrangements would have been brought out to simplify and ease the procedure so that the migrant workers do not have to wait together for hours and hours until they may enter the trains or buses, the court ordered.”
With this the directions were passed clearly stating and based on the “Indian express” news item titled as migrant workers made to wait for 19 hours in Gujarat to board train to U.P.
The court also took note of the news item published in the Indian express date on 11th may 2020 titled as “”Stop migrant workers walking home, take them to shelters: DGP”.
This report concerned the Director-General of Police’s direction to stop any workers seen walking and take them to the nearest shelter houses.In this context, the court wanted to know how many shelters homes around the state of Gujarat and at which locations are available as at the time.
“Every day, hundreds of migrant workers with small children live in the most inhumane and deplorable conditions in different parts of the world, especially on the highways.” “As we have observed earlier, although all necessary steps are being taken by the state government, we are of the view that few more modalities need to be worked out at the earliest to ease the suffering of the people at large, the bench observed”.
Nevertheless, the bench further observed, that it was the “State government should keep in mind that they are at current picture tackling and dealing with the most downtrodden, under privileged and weaker sections of the society.”
Besides , They’re all frightened and scared .They don’t dread by COVID-19, but they’re scared they ‘d die from starvation and food shortage.
“Under these instances, it is the paramount responsibility of the State Government to assure and focus on the downtrodden class of people that they will be provided for in the best way possible. It is about time that the state government deals very carefully with this delicate situation and instilled trust in the minds of the public at large that they would be provided for.”
Accordingly, the court requested Mr. Kamal Trivedi, the Advocate General, and Mr.ManishaLavkumar Shah, the Government Pleader, to immediately discuss all the above-mentioned issues with the State Government’s highest authorities and to return to the bench with some concrete plans to address the issues faced by the public at large as at the period.
However, looking at note of the Exacerbating COVID-19 outbreak condition, the court made some recommendations aimed at raising people’s morals.
The court noted that the state government has entrusted the exclusive charge to ShriDr. Rajeev Gupta, additional secretary forest and environment to combat with the condition prevailing in the entire city of Ahmedabad and the areas situated on the outskirts.
“We are sure that with the special skills that Dr. Gupta has, the rich knowledge acquired as an I.A.S. officer over a number of years and with all the capacity at his command, the situation in Ahmedabad will soon be usual.”
“We should like to deliver a message to the people who do not lose hope, anything that has a beginning has an end, and Novel COVID-19 is not immortal. We all need to stand in solidarity and combat. People with resources will stand apart from the frail, the aged, the vulnerable and the poor.”
IN MY OPINION
According to my sight and outlooks, there are still miseries amongst the poor people. They have been challenge with more adversities, ever since the lockdown has commenced. The government in Gujarat had botched and unsuccessful in support needs and necessities’ of these vulnerable migrant workers.
Aftermath, the train had commence to return back these migrant workers to their homelands; they have not been given complete Advantage and appropriate assistance that needs to be provided to them.
However, the government made arrangements to combat such condition. In terms of these migrant workers, who are confronting vast number of adversities, besides keeping them in shelter, avoiding them to travel back homes on foot by walking. They should be given proper assistance on boarding trains and sending them back to their homes.
Secondly , since they food shortage, the government can collaborate with more NGO’s to provide food and medical stuff, since the other people cannot provide due the restrictions and lockdown .
Article Written By-Sakshi Mehta
[1]https://www.livelaw.in/top-stories/gujarat-hc-takes-suo-moto-notice-of-lockdown-miseries-of-hungry-migrant-workers-covid19-lockdown-156635
[2] https://www.livelaw.in/columns/migrant-workers-cases-sc-failed-to-rise-to-the-occasion-156541
[3]https://www.livelaw.in/pdf_upload/pdf_upload-374663.pdf
[4]https://theleaflet.in/it-appears-that-people-at-large-are-hungry-people-are-without-any-food-or-shelter-observes-gujarat-hc-while-taking-suo-motu-cognizance/
