Migrants sidelined at ration shops
Migrants from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and even the general Telugu public have alleged that TRS leaders were playing favourites at ration shops during rice distribution.
They said TRS leaders overseeing the distribution operation at most of the shops are giving out tokens according to their discretion, often at the expense of migrants, even though they have ration cards.
At a ration shop in Kavadiguda, very few people were able to get tokens, even though they had been waiting there since early in the morning.
Mintu, a Bihari migrant living in the locality, said he was unable to get a token even though he had been waiting in line since 8 am. “Only a few people were able to get tokens. After that, the local TRS leader gave the rest of them to people close to him.”
Onlookers who overheard the statement nodded in agreement. The TRS leader, on seeing Mintu complaining to this reporter and attracting attention, took Mintu aside and discreetly put a token in his hand to assuage him.
Raju Ojha of the Bihar Samaj, an activist group for the welfare of migrants from that state, said he had been to multiple ration shops in the city and the situation was the same in almost all places.
“At all the places, the local politician, mostly the corporator, is overseeing the distribution. They are favouring locals over migrant, who possess ration cards but don't understand Telugu and can be easily fooled. It is all about canvassing for votes,” he said.
At Bansilalpet, there were at least 70-80 people, mostly women, waiting in line to receive their rations.
They had been there since the previous day. When asked, all of them said Lakshmipati, the husband of TRS corporator for Bansilalpet, had distributed tokens the previous day.
Life was even tougher for migrants who don’t possess ration cards. The civil supplies department and GHMC have arranged rice distribution for them at separate locations but the migrants have had little luck so far.
In the Musheerabad area, the migrants were asked to go to the Musheerabad playground. However, the counters have rarely opened since April 1.
Lohi Das, a migrant from Odisha, who had come there along with his wife and daughter, said, “The counter was opened only for a few hours since April 1. Whenever we came here, they asked us to leave and return the next day.”
Das, a daily wage labourer, said he is running low on savings as he hasn’t made any money since the lockdown began.
A group of migrants from Madhya Pradesh said they, too, had waited for long hours at the ration counter on Friday and Saturday but were unable to get any rice or cash.