Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday requested the Central government not to charge migrant labourers returning home railway fares.
Mr. Thackeray tweeted the request late on Sunday.
The CM told the Centre the labourers are from an extremely poor background. “They have been financially affected by the novel coronavirus pandemic. Taking a humanitarian approach, the Railways should not charge them ticket fare,” he said.
The government also clarified that no train will leave from Mumbai for migrant labourers as the city has several containment zones. Maharashtra has been sending migrant labourers home on special trains running from Nashik and Bhiwandi in the last few days. Those stranded in Maharashtra include labourers from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Punjab, Karnataka, West Bengal and Chhattisgarh.
As per the government numbers, around five lakh labourers were sheltered in the State for the last 40 days and will be taken care of till they are sent home.
Meanwhile, the State administration has been directed to update the list of migrant labourers in relief shelters and to be ready in case trains are started from Pune, Mumbai or Thane.