Hyderabad (Telangana): The Ministry of Railways is fully prepared to press more Shramik trains into service to evacuate the stranded workers across the nation. Minister of State (MoS) Railways, Suresh C Angadi in an exclusive interview with ETV Bharat's News Editor Nishant Sharma, said that even as his ministry is committed to evacuating the stranded migrant labourers he sought cooperation from state governments to play a much needed role in facilitating the smooth operation in this hour of crisis. He urged the Maharashta and West Bengal governments to accept migrant workers in a dignified manner and not politicise the matter. Excerpts from the interview:
Q: Railways are the worst hit during the corona-triggered lockdown. How long will it take for Railways to restore their services?
A: Railways have done a tremendous job in helping the people during the corona-induced lockdown. Anganwadi workers and our volunteers are working round the clock to provide necessary food items to the needy. Railway ministry has also faced economic slump but Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced a mega economic package of Rs 20,000 crore for the infrastructure which will benefit us in the long run.
Q: Shramik trains have been deployed across the country to deport the migrants. Will there be any increase in the number of these trains?
A: Honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arranged Special Shramik trains for migrant workers. I appeal to all our workers not to panic as we will deploy more and more Shramik trains for them. The state from which the migrants are leaving and the state towards which they are heading must co-operate in every manner and pay the respective fare of 15%. Railway Ministry will bear 85% of the total fare and we are also providing necessary food items too. But state governments must help the Central government in the evacuation of the stranded citizens.
Q: There has been a heated debate in the country over the ticket fare. Can you highlight on the details of the ticket fare? In most of places in spite of the laid guidelines, workers have to pay money for their travel. Will the Centre and the state govts bear the travel fees as the migrants are left with no money?
A: State governments must develop an understanding between themselves and pay the train fare for the migrant workers. Railway Minister Piyush Goyal has announced that trains will run in almost every district. Deployed nodal officers and Chief Secretaries of various states must take a note of the contact details of the migrant workers. Workers should not panic and must ensure social distancing norms. We are taking all the steps to ensure that migrant workers should reach back home. Ministry will also pay the cost for the travel if beared by the workers.
Railway is the lifeline of the people of India and lives of the migrant workers are very important. We need to fight against corona. Media has played a key role in making migrants understand that they should not be scared.
Q: State governments of West Bengal, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra are of the view that the number of Shramik trains should not be increased. Mamata Banerjee has said that she will not allow more than 105 trains in a day. Your comments?
A: Mamata Didi and Uddhav Thackeray should not do politics over migrant labourers. She should accept all the workers in Bengal and Maharashtra in a dignified manner. Labourers relocate themselves to other states in search of better jobs. During this crisis, the state government should extend all possible help to the labourers. Didi is ready to accept migrants from Bangladesh but not from India which is really disappointing. I request her to pay the ticket fares for all the migrant workers who are returning to Bengal. Railway Ministry will provide more Shramik trains to transport migrants back to their native land, keeping aside the political differences. I urge all the politicians to take every possible step required for the evacuation of the stranded migrants.
Q: Railways can witness huge financial losses in the upcoming financial year. In an attempt to recover the losses, will the passengers have to pay more for the ticket fare?
A: At present, our priority is to evacuate all the stranded migrants at the earliest. Decision related to price hike of the ticket has not been taken yet. We have also made arrangements for special passenger trains with no increase in the wages. We can use the mega economic package to re-generate revenue under the leadership of PM Modi and Piyush Goyal. Around 12 lakh Railway employees are working day and night to serve the nation and I congratulate them.
READ: Railways MOS Suresh Angadi attacks Mamata Banerjee for doing petty politics over migrant workers
