URGENT ACTION NEEDED FOR THE MIGRANTS : REQUIRED UNDERSTANDING AND HUMANE APPROACH

URGENT ACTION NEEDED FOR THE MIGRANTS : REQUIRED UNDERSTANDING AND HUMANE APPROACH
I feel terribly pained to know that one of the migrants from Kashipur who was apparently working in Bomikhal areas of Bhubaneswar had returned to Rayagada and after required quarantine period came back to his village. There he was completely ostracised; was humiliated day in and day out and was not even allowed to talk. He took poison and committed suicide. None was there to take him to hospital. None could know that he had died tragically! I know it is an extreme case but it shows that in remote areas things can go wrong.

The other case is that I meet a couple regularly during my morning walk and ask them about their welfare. They say that their two sons who were working in Visakhapatnam were forced to walk back to Kashipur as the factory where they were working was closed. On Odisha - AP Boarder, they were caught and were taken to a quarantine centre at Rayagada. Parents were eagerly waiting for their return, spending anxious moments! 

I am sure all our friends know the status of the migrants who have already returned and who would be returning soon. Looking at the enormous issues and the way, the migrants are being treated everywhere, it seems something has seriously gone amiss! To my mind it is the lack of proper understanding and a Humane Approach! Those migrants who are stranded have been reduced to beggars despite many State Governments, Philanthropic Organisations, Concerned Citizens have made enormous efforts to feed them. But to feed Lakhs of migrants , is not an easy job! Protests have erupted which could be a natural response. Gandhiji has aptly said- FOR A MAN WITH EMPTY STOMACH, FOOD IS GOD! Do we agree or disagree?

The Migrants have been kept in isolation and have been forced to obey lots of rules and regulations as per the COVID-19 requirements but has it been done with the understanding that they have been victimised for no reason nor any crime!

All Migrants must return to their home and the State should make all provisions to bring them back. This should be done at the earliest. I am sure the Government is working a system for this. The Train/Bus travel must be free of cost. There cannot any bargaining or politics.

After their return, they must be put in the mandatory Quarantine. Here the approach should be of persuasion and not threat and intimidation. The Authorities who are handling the issue must understand that there should be a collaborative framework for making the Migrants understand that for the safety of their families and their communities, they must undergo a period of quarantine. Shuttle counselling is required at this point and the officials handing them must enlist the support of NGOs/CBOs/ Volunteers. The trust deficit built over last few years must be removed. 

The Quarantine Centres must be so designed that it does not give an impression of a prison but a place of joy. It can be converted as Learning Centres. I am told some experts are working on a 14-day Schedule. I think on Food, Drinking Water and Sanitation, there must be adequate arrangements as per the announced policy of the Government. I saw a Menu announced by the Collector, Ganjam. Nice to see it but let there be a Transparent and Accountable System. The District Administration must open a control room to address the grievances of the Migrants who have returned. Here the NGOs/CBOs have a role to give a honest feed back to Administration. The Media should be allowed to visit these centres and report on the state of affairs freely and without prejudice! The people of Odisha have a right to know how the fellow Odia Migrants are treated!

The Cutting Edge of the delivery is the Panchayats. The question comes whether our panchayats are equipped to handle such a situation? Whether our Sarpanches and PRI Functionaries have been asked an opinion if they will be taking up responsibilities with a smile? Over a period time, our PRIs have been reduced to a state of helplessness being manipulated by the Bureaucracy and Party Politics. Has the 73rd and 74th Amendment and PESA Act etc. have been properly enforced? Has there been a framework of Rules and Processes? In Odisha, PESA Rules have not been finalised as yet despite having 23% of the Population as STs. And all Gram Sabha decisions have been manufactured. There must be fool proof system to ensure that all the deserving eligible people have their BPL cards, Job Cards, Pension and other Social Security entitlements. We are checking in many villages and there are still many excluded households and nobody to help them.

The greatest challenge for all of us is as how we transcend the Relief Mindset to Development Goals? Such a huge labour force available in the villages and how we should motivate the migrants to join the sustainable development processes so that they do not have to face such humiliation and dehumanisation?

We have always advocated a collaborative framework of development involving the Government, the GPs, the NGOs and above all the communities. I know there have been many plans made at the GP level like GPDP etc.It is time to activate them recovering them from the Archives and Wastepaper Baskets. There is a specific role for the NGOs/CSOs in this collaborative framework which should be recognised.

I urge the Authorities to have a U-turn of their mindset and treat the issues just not as a Law and Order or Enforcement issues but as issues of Socio-economic Transformation. Let a new chapter begin. I urge every one to read the Famous Gyanpith Award winning Novel MATI MATALA of Gopi Mohanty. Odisha is waiting eagerly for many Rabis and Chhabis ( Heroes of the Novel) for reimagination of a new Society!