SC to Hear Petition Seeking Relief for Migrant Workers Today

The migrant workers have been unable to sustain themselves in the cities during the 21-day lockdown period.

The 21-day lockdown has impacted migrant workers badly.

(Photo Courtesy: Reuters)

The Supreme Court will hear on Monday, 30 March, a petition seeing relief for thousands of workers who have been leaving big cities and going back to their hometowns. The migrant workers are journeying home as they’re unable to sustain themselves in the cities during the 21-day coronavirus lockdown period.

The public interest litigation, filed by lawyer Alak Alok Shrivastava said, “Redress the heart wrenching and inhuman plight of thousands of migrant workers families - women, small children, elders and differently-abled persons – walking on foot for hundreds of kilometers, from cities to their native villages: without food, water, transport, medicine or shelter, amid coronavirus crisis.”

It added, “...The biggest sufferers of this crisis situation are the poor, unregistered migrant workers, working in various big cities of India as rickshaw-pullers, ragpickers, construction workers, factory workers, house-maids, servants, unskilled and semi-skilled workers.”

India’s COVID-19 count crossed the 1,000-mark on Sunday, 29 March, with states reporting 130 new cases, the highest for a single day so far, even as Delhi saw a major spike of 23 new infections and Maharashtra reported two deaths from the disease.
This is the first time Delhi’s single-day COVID-19 tally has crossed into double digits. It’s a worrying sign indeed, the state authorities said.

Nationally, Sunday was the third consecutive day when the count of new cases was over 100, indicating that the infection was spreading. States have reported 1,122 novel coronavirus cases so far, of which 30 have died. The Union health ministry has confirmed 1024 cases and 27 deaths.