NE NEWS SERVICE
CHENNAI, APRIL 30
The Tamil Nadu government was keen on sending back migrant labourers stranded in the state and expecting “clear-cut” guidelines on the logistics from the Centre so that it can start the process, an official said on Thursday.
Migrant workers, tourists, students and others stranded in different parts of the country were on Wednesday allowed to move to their respective destinations by the Centre with certain conditions, giving a big relief to the distressed people.
The state government was expecting guidelines by Thursday evening on the logistics involved in the process, the senior labour department official said.
“The issue of students from other states stranded in Tamil Nadu also arose while discussing about the migrant workers, at a meeting of an expert committee constituted by Chief Minister K Palaniswami.
We are expecting guidelines from the Centre by this evening on the logistics of shifting them,” the official said. The state government was keen on sending them home and would wait for clear cut instruction from the central government on the mode of transportation and the wherewithal involved in the process.
Hosiery town of Tirupur, which accounts for two lakh migrant workers, and Chennai with 1.34 lakh work force, have the highest concentration of such labourers in the state. In neighbouring Kancheepuram district, around 38,000 migrant workers have been identified by the administration.
About a month into lockdown, the home ministry had on Wednesday relaxed lockdown measures to allow movement of migrant workers across states but with strict health protocols.
Listing the conditions, the ministry said all states and union territories should designate nodal authorities and develop standard protocols for receiving and sending such stranded persons. The Tamil Nadu government, taking the plight of the workers into consideration, has announced the distribution of Covid-19 relief kit containing 15 kg of rice, one kg each dal and oil to lakhs of migrant workers from Assam, Odisha, West Bengal and Gujarat stranded in the state.
TN appointed Atuyla Misra as Nodal authority
Following the order of the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Tamil Nadu government on Thursday appointed 1988 batch IAS Officer Atulya Misra holding the post of Additional Chief Secretary to Government, Revenue and Disaster Management Department as Nodal authority to regulate the issues relating to movement of stranded persons due to prohibitive orders.
In an order issued today, the Chief Secretary K. Shanmugam said the Nodal officer can be contacted at 09940341445 and landline number is 044 25671556 and email id: revsec@tn.gov.in the release added.