ETV Bharat Impact: Kerala draws up plans to bring back farmers stranded in Karnataka

After ETV Bharat's report on the plight of farmers stranded in remote villages of Karnataka amid coronavirus, Kerala Chief Minister directed officials to take the necessary steps to bring them back to the state and assured that they will be brought back in a phased manner.

Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala government is making arrangements to bring back farmers stranded in remote villages of Karnataka amid coronavirus outbreak after ETV Bharat narrated their ordeal in a special report published on April 26.

The farmers belonging to Wayanad, Kannur and Malappuram districts of Kerala, are running out of food and medicines, as they didn't earn their wages due to the lockdown in the country.

On April 26, ETV Bharat published a piece on the plight of farmers, who were piling up massive losses unable to sell their produce during the prolonged lockdown.

Highlighting the plight of the farmers and difficulties being faced by them during the crisis, ETV Bharat sought immediate intervention of the government into the matter.

Within a day of the story’s publication, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan directed officials to take the necessary steps to bring back stranded workers and assured that they will be brought back to the state in a phased manner.

During a routine COVID-meet on Monday evening, Vijayan said that all arrangements are being made to address their problems and bring them back home.

Acting on the report, Wayanad District Collector Adeela Abdullah held a meeting with the MLAs to discuss the matter on Monday evening following Kerala CM's direction.