New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday said it is inclined to pass directions to the national capital region (NCR) states to have community kitchens and to facilitate transportation of migrant workers who are willing to return home amid the current wave of COVID-19 pandemic.
The apex court observed that authorities must ensure that migrant workers returning home are not charged exorbitant fare by private bus operators and the Centre may consider involving the Railways to facilitate their transportation.
A bench of Justices Ashok Bhushan and MR Shah observed this while hearing a plea filed by three activists who have sought directions to the Centre and states to ensure food security, cash transfers, transport facilities and other welfare measures for migrant workers who are facing distress due to the curbs clamped in several parts of the country amid the pandemic.
For the time being, we are inclined to pass directions on community kitchen so that nobody starves and also on facilitating transport of those who are willing to go, the bench said, adding that it would pass the order by Thursday evening.
The bench said that for NCR states Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana, it would issue certain directions while for other states, it may ask them to file their responses on the issues raised in the plea.
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Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the applicants, said that due to the pandemic a huge number of migrant workers are again facing distress as they have lost jobs and have no money to look after themselves.
Referring to the prayers made in the application, he claimed that migrant workers were being charged exorbitantly by private bus operators for travelling to their native places.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the bench that the country is fighting the pandemic and efforts of all the states is to ensure that industrial and construction activities are not halted.
This year, the effort of every state is to ensure that it is not a lockdown in a sense which we have seen last time. Industries are working and construction activities are going on, he told the bench, adding that all state governments are elected government and are alive to the situation.
Mehta told the bench that states should be allowed to place all the details before the bench.
That we will allow. But he (Bhushan) has raised the issue of NCR. He says private bus operators are charging exorbitant rates. The police and administration have to take action on this, the bench observed.
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Mehta said facilitation of transportation should not be considered as incentivisation for the exodus of migrants.
Any direction right now that facilitate their transportation will incentivise migration, he said.