Sad plight of migrant labourers due to lockdown in J&K

Hundreds of migrant workers are struggling to eke out a living as the strict curfews imposed to curb the spread of coronavirus, has paralyzed their lives.

J&K (UT): In Jammu and Kashmir as well as across the country, the administration imposed strict curfews in March to curb the spread of coronavirus, thereby paralyzing the lives of ordinary people and exacerbating the plight of the poor.

In Jammu, kabadi and dholki workers from outside the state are starving of hunger and looking out for two meals a day, waiting in their makeshift tents.

Tara Khatun, a resident of Barabanki district in the eastern state of Uttar Pradesh, says she used to pick up scrap and send them to companies in Jammu and that she has been doing this for six years to eke out a living.

However, the Covid induced lockdown by the government has badly affected their small business, she said.

She added that people are not ready to buy, and they are having difficulty in selling goods.

It is for the first time in their lives that they are going through such difficulties and that they are not even in a position to return to their villages, she said.