Unfair, Unlawful: Migrant workers condemn move after Karnataka govt cancels trains

The Karnataka migrant workers, on the other hand, have booked their tickets to travel back home after days of struggle due to the nationwide lockdown.

In its new decision, the Karnataka government has decided to cancel all the Shramik trains that were supposed to run to ferry migrant labourers from Karnataka to various destinations across the country from Wednesday, May 6.

The decision came on Tuesday after the Chief Minister's meeting with the prominent builders and real estate firms in the state.

The migrant workers have condemned the Karnataka government's move to cancel trains and call it 'unfair, unjust and unlawful'.

Trains cancelled for the migrants

According to the reports, the builders and real-estate owners expressed their difficulties and concerns over the labour due to the migration of these migrant workers amid this crisis period to the Chief Minister.

The migrant workers, on the other hand, have booked their tickets to travel back to their homeland after days of struggle due to the nation-wide lockdown.

The daily wage earners were bearing the brunt of the lockdown as many did not receive proper salary nor food and water from the employers after the commencement of the lockdown.

According to N Manjunath Prasad, nodal officer for inter-State travel from Karnataka, while most of those who had already booked tickets had left, the authorities would "convince others to stay back" as economic activity would begin.

"We want the migrant labourers to stay back. They are the backbone of our economy without whom we cannot kick-start the economy. We will take good care of them," said the source.

In a letter written by Prasad dated May 5, he stated, "We had requested to arrange to run two train services every day for five days except for tomorrow (May 6) for which trains can be arranged and the time of departure can be at 9am, 12pm and 3pm departing from Bengaluru to Danapur, Bihar. Since the train services are not required from tomorrow the letter cited under reference above is withdrawn."

Meanwhile, CM Yediyurappa also added that the directions were given to the ministers to convince the labourers to refrain from returning to their home states.