Reports of migrant labourers in Telangana, Kerala and elsewhere returning to their home states flashed in media, is leading to similar demands in Tamil Nadu too.
About 1,100 migrant workers at a construction site at Alappakkam near here are demanding they be sent back home whereas the company officials are pressuring them to stay back and start work, said migrant workers and non-governmental organisations (NGO).
“We are about 1,100 workers here from Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha and other places. We want to go back to our home state first.
The company officials collected our identity cards like aadhar/voter ID and others saying that they needed it for arranging transport,” a migrant worker told from the construction site.
According to him, on Sunday the company officials collected the cards and on Monday there were police personnel at the site.
“We are not allowed to go out to purchase our medicine and other items. The police are asking us for the prescription papers which are not there,” the labourers said.
Agreeing that availability of rations was not a major problem, they said that the workers want is to go back home.
“The workers want to go back to their home state. While food is being provided by NGOs social distancing at their staying place is not being maintained,” Jayaram Venkatesan, Convenor, Arappor Iyakkam, said.
Venkatesan said the Arappor Iyakkam will be sending a representation to the government to help the migrant workers to go back to their home state.
Earlier, on Sunday, several migrant workers took to the streets, demanding that they be sent back to their respective states.
