Arjun, in his late 30s, is one among the two dozen migrant workers engaged at a pharma unit in Patancheru mandal. A native of Hili village in Balurghat district of West Bengal, he left his three children in the care of his aged parents and travelled more than 2,000 km by train along with his wife Rupali to eke out a living here. His work involves cleaning the premises, assisting the mason in construction activity and other odd jobs.
Arjun and Rupali, along with other families, are put up in tin-roof shacks on the premises. Most of the workers are from West Bengal while a few others are from Jharkhand and Bihar. A majority of his counterparts have left for their respective native places on foot, while those who stayed back battle homesickness.
Arjun and others are seasonal workers and this is not their first stint in this industry. “We have come to work here for the third time. We are given advance money by the thekedar (contractor) on an agreement that we would be staying here to work for two months at the least. If the conditions are good, we continue for another couple of months. Likewise, the thekedar allows us to continue if he is satisfied with our work,” said Arjun.
“Depending on the nature of work and our commitment, the advance amount is given, which varies from ₹10,000 to ₹30,000 for the two-month period,” revealed Basidur Rehman, a workman supervisor.
However, their daily earnings are meagre as compared to prevalent rates for daily wagers, which ranges between ₹600 and ₹800 a day. What Arjun and others earn is far less. “I get ₹210 a day. We are provided free meals thrice a day and the accommodation is rent-free. We are paid an additional ₹250 per week to meet other expenses. I manage to send ₹6,000 to my parents every month,” said Arjun.