Caught in the middle of an epidemic

Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot has written to his Gujarat counterpart Vijay Rupani to ensure workers reach the state borders from where they can be taken to their villages.

“We are also trying them to convince them not to leave,” said Gujarat deputy chief minister Nitin Patel. Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren has promised that any worker stuck in the state would be cared for by the government.

FEAR AND STIGMA

Returning home has not been pleasant for Bhajaman Nayak. A resident of Kumbharapipiliguda village in Kalahandi district, Nayak was one of the lucky workers who found a berth on the Alappuzha-dhanbad Express from Thrissur, where he worked, and returned home a day before the lockdown was imposed on Tuesday.

But fear and stigma about the disease wiped out his luck. He was forced to pitch a tent outside the village as local residents barred him from coming within 200 metres of habitation. “Our only scare is that we can be bitten by snakes. Some of us guard against snakes in night,” he said.

In many other villages, migrant labourers have been barred from entering and compelled to stay in make-shift quarantine homes.

In Haryana’s Hassan village, even the entry of relatives has been banned. “We have sealed the boundaries of the village and people going to fields are only allowed to pass through it,” said Pratap Singh, village head.

For women workers, the sudden migration has brought forth a loss of income, safety and the added burden of unpaid work.

“I earned more than my husband as a help. I was saving up to buy a cycle, but now I fear I will cooking and cleaning for the family and not earn,” said Pinki, Shaikh’s wife. “But it is alright if we are saved from this disease.”

It is Thursday evening, and Lal and his group of eight still have several hours of walking ahead. They are tired, but continue with only short breaks. “If we go at this pace and determination, we will reach home Friday morning,” said Kandhai Lal.