Stranded migrants struggle for food in Telangana, despite government assurances

Hyderabad: In spite of the Telangana government’s claims that it would let no migrant labourer stuck in the state go hungry, and they would be provided 12 kg rice and Rs 500 each, there are thousands of migrants in the city who haven’t yet received it. Many of them are completely dependent on the charity of private citizens or ad-hoc donations from government and police officials.

A majority of the migrants are from Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and Chhattisgarh who have been out of work since the lockdown began and are unable to travel home.

They are cooped up in small tenements in areas such as Cherlapally, Rasoolpura and Medchal, often five or six people sleeping in one small room.

Many of them who spoke to Deccan Chronicle said they are unable to claim the 12 kg rice from counters set up by the Civil Supplies Corporation. Left with no options, they are recording videos and taking pictures of their plight, appealing for help from all their contacts.

Sunil Kumar, a welder from Bihar, living with five friends in Cherlapally, said they have been dependent on free meals distributed at a nearby water tank by the GHMC every afternoon. The crowds were too big and the food would be over in a matter of minutes. They asked an official at a nearby ration shop for supplies so they could cook at home.

“He took our mobile and Aadhaar numbers. The next day, when we didn’t get any calls, I called him. He told us to give him my employer’s number. He said he would force my employer to give us food. I refused because I didn’t want to make my employer angry; I want to retain my job,” Kumar said.

The matter of claiming their 12 kg remains unresolved. “I have around 30 friends all of whom are from my district/village. None of them were able to get the 12 kg rice or the Rs 500 cash,” he added.

Mr Suresh Nayak lives with nine other Odisha natives in Chilkanagar. Nayak and his friends were unable to get ration from the counters.

“I asked at many ration shops. The officials sent us to some nearby counters, but they were never open. At one counter, we gave our Aadhaar numbers to some officials but nothing came of it. On Wednesday, we gave up and finally sent out a video recording of ourselves and circulated it on WhatsApp,” he said.

The video was noticed by Rachakonda police who arrived in the evening to give them 15 kg of rice and some wheat.