Nodal officers flooded with calls as migrants fear lockdown extension

LUCKNOW:It’s not about the 21-day lockdown, but the apprehension (without any basis) about its likely extension to 90 or more days that appears to be the main trigger causing reverse migration and resulting in many nodal officers being flooded with calls from the people who want to come back to Uttar Pradesh.

“We have been making efforts to convince the migrants to stay back. But 99 per cent of them want to go back to their native place despite arrangements of food and stay in New Delhi and even in other states. It’s difficult to convince the people who believe the lockdown will be for more than 21 days as they do not have funds to feed their family or pay rent,” said a nodal officer, who has been coordinating the state government’s efforts to ensure that people stay back wherever they are.

The government has appointed nodal officers, with an IPS officer in the team, for every state.

Most officers have set up control rooms to listen to people’s grievances and get details. Although the control rooms have been set to help UP residents stuck outside the state, people belonging to other states, too, are getting in touch for help.

“We have received more than 400 calls in the past 12 hours and only about 40 of them are from natives of UP,” said in charge of a control room.

Principal secretary, medical education, Rajnish Dubey has been asked to camp at Noida and keep a watch over the situation in Noida and Ghaziabad in coordination with district officials as a large number of migrants are coming from New Delhi, Haryana, Punjab and neighbouring states.“We have teams of senior officers in Lucknow. A senior officer will now be there to monitor the situation in districts of west UP,” said a government functionary. “We are listening to problems of the people, who are getting in touch with nodal officers. We are asking the people not to come back just now and that the state government can take care of their problems like food etc where they are, by getting in touch with the district magistrates. We can help them to come back only after April 14,” said another nodal officer.

“Those who want to come from Kerala and other states should stay back. Don’t pose a risk to your family or near and dear ones by coming back here,” said chief minister Yogi Adityanath in an appeal to migrants on Sunday.“The chief minister has asked district magistrates to quarantine migrants compulsorily for 14 days at the district headquarters by making arrangements for their stay in ‘dharamshalas’ and hostels of educational institutions etc. The people will be stopped and quarantined at the district headquarters now and they will not be allowed to reach small towns or villages till the 14-day quarantine period is over,” said the functionary.

An official communique on Saturday said about one lakh migrants have reached the state in the past three days but unofficial estimates point towards a higher number.

“The number of migrants reaching UP in the past one week may be around 2 lakh. All those coming to state after March 1 are under watch,” said a government functionary. The chief minister has also urged landlords not to ask for rent till the lockdown is lifted and district magistrates in some districts have issued orders asking landlords not to ask for rent from tenants for a month, said the functionary.

ALTHOUGH THE CONTROL ROOMS HAVE BEEN SET TO HELP UP RESIDENTS STUCK OUTSIDE THE STATE, PEOPLE BELONGING TO OTHER STATES, TOO, ARE GETTING IN TOUCH FOR ASSISTANCE