Guest workers keen to come back to Tamil Nadu

CHENNAI: Mithash Manjhi, 38, works in an agriculture field in Ismailpur in Bihar’s Vaishali district. A father of four, Manjhi says he misses his ‘home’ in Maraimalar Nagar – a room in the industrial town in suburban Chennai which he shared with 10 others for a decade.
He and 30 other construction workers from his village returned to Bihar on Saturday by a special train, scared away by the Covid-19 onslaught. Though he is back home with his family, Manjhi is keen to return.
Like him, nearly 3.5 lakh guest workers have returned to their native states from different parts of Tamil Nadu since May 6. Many guest workers are looking forward to returning though once normalcy returns as they feel TN was one of the better states that provided a decent livelihood.
Hundreds of miles away, Jagadesh Sahu, 22, who worked with his father Vasanth Kumar of Odisha’s Ganjam district as housekeeping staff in the hotel industry in Chennai, echoed similar sentiments. “We will come back to Chennai once normal rail traffic is restored. Chennai was kind to us,” said Jagadesh, who earned Rs 15,000 per month.
A young woman of Bhanpur in Odisha’s Balangir district, returned home along with 300 other women workers last week from a garment unit in Tirupur. “Many of us were forced to return home as our parents were scared we would be infected,” said the woman, unwilling to be named. “We reached here a couple of days ago. But we are kept in a community hall where social distancing is near impossible. We are hoping to return to TN soon,” she said. They earned around Rs 10,000 a month and were provided hostel facilities by their employer.
Though the pandemic triggered an exodus of guest workers, many of them return home this time of the year for the Rabi season. “Usually, Tirupur units operate only with 30% to 40% of its workforce during this period. Only from September, the production will be in full swing. If they come back by then, it will be good for the industry, workers and the economy,” said Raja M Shanmugam, president of Tirupur Exporters Association. The Tirupur garment cluster engages around 2.5 lakh guest workers.