If the sudden declaration of the nationwide lockdown that left him high and dry without a job was not bad enough, the situation of Naseebul, a migrant worker at Angamaly, got further worsened as repeated lockdown extensions made the reunion with his six-month-old son in West Bengal looked increasingly bleak.
So, he did not have to think twice before boarding a contract carriage along with 24 others for a trip back home in the remote village of Faridpur in Jalangi block of Murshidabad district, even though he had to cough up ₹7,500, a small fortune for a jobless migrant.
Desperate to return home, migrant workers from the State are increasingly turning towards similar rides costing between ₹5,000 and ₹8,000.
Such services are being operated from migrant-intense regions like Perumbavoor, Muvattupuzha, and Angamaly.
“The sporadic deployment of Shramik special trains for transportation of migrants and the uncertainty surrounding the schedule of those limited operations are driving hapless migrants to the costly alternative.
“These contract carriage services seem to be arranged by unscrupulous agents and with no fare regulatory mechanism, exploiting an already exploited lot in the process,” said George Mathew, coordinator, Progressive Workers Organisation.
A majority of such services seem to be operated to destinations such as West Bengal, Odisha, and Bihar. “We have so far operated 10 services, predominately to West Bengal, transporting around 250 people, and on the return journey, we bring Keralites stranded there,” said C.K. Shamon, a contract carriage operator from Muvattupuzha.
Stripped of all potential business for the foreseeable future, operators look at these services as their only option to earn what little is possible.
Many operators are due for renewal of insurance, which costs over ₹75,000, and they hope to cover it through these services.