Says a migrant worker on returning to Mumbai just a month after travelling to his hometown where, he said, they had enough to eat, but there are no jobs
Shubham Yadav (centre, front) with his friends Manoj Yadav and Vinay Yadav on either side at LTT on Wednesday. Pics/Rajesh Gupta
More migrant workers, who had left for their hometowns last month in disappointment over the lack of jobs and food due to the COVID-19 lockdown, returned on Wednesday in the hope of working again as the city limps back to life.
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Close to 100 passengers alighted from trains that arrived to Lokmanya Tilak Terminus from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday. Among them was a group that had rode 1,500 km on a motorbike to Ghazipur in UP just a month back.
mid-day spoke to several migrant workers who said they returned after realising that there was no scope of getting a job in their hometown. "We used to work at a pharmaceutical company and lived at a Kandivli slum where the number of new Coronavirus cases was rising. Our parents were scared for us, so we decided to leave and as no transportation was available, we set off on the journey on bike," said Subhash Yadav, who returned from Ghazipur along with his friends Vinay Yadav and Shubham Yadav.
Dhiraj Kumar, a migrant from Bihar
Vinay said, "Riding to UP was not easy. Everything was shut on the way, we were not getting food and faced difficulty in getting fuel. But, we were not the only ones on the roads. Many others were also heading home on bikes and auto rickshaws." "We still remember those horrific days; how we survived. We slept wherever we felt safe, some people gave us shelter and helped us reach home."
"Many of us are returning with hope that things will get back to normal soon. Though, on the journey here, we were thinking what if the government announces another lockdown. We are aware that cases are still rising where we are headed, but we have no other option. In our home town, we were getting food, but not jobs. We can-t just sit and have a meal; we have to earn it," said Vinay.
Dhiraj Kumar, who earned R400-R500 a day working as a delivery executive and stayed at Wadala before the lockdown brought his life to a standstill, also returned from his home in Gaya, Bihar, on Wednesday.
Forced to leave on May 9 due to unemployment, Kumar has returned with the hope of resuming work as the city has reopened. "There was no work and we used to get only one meal a day in the last few days before I left. It was very painful to leave without a single penny in hand, and I walked several kilometres, hiding from police, and reached Bhivandi from where I took a four-wheeler and reached Bihar."
"But, the suffering didn-t stop there. Every day proved to be a challenge as we didn-t have any money. The government there didn-t do anything for us and getting a job was very difficult. When I learnt that trains to Mumbai had started again, I immediately booked a ticket. My employer also contacted me and helped me with the travel expenses. I hope to lead a normal life again. I know life is not going to be easy as still COVID-19 cases are still on the rise, but we need to earn to survive," Kumar said.
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