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Union Interior Minister Amit Shah wrote to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee that the Center was not receiving “expected support” from her government to help migrant workers get home.
The state government is doing “injustice” to stranded Bengali migrant workers across the country by not allowing “Shramik” (worker) trains passing the railways to reach the state, Shah wrote in the letter:according to MHA officials.
Shah said the Center had already facilitated the return home of more than 200,000 workers, adding that West Bengal migrants employed elsewhere were also eager to return home.
“The West Bengal government does not allow trains with migrants to reach the state. This is an injustice to the migrant workers of the World Bank. This will create more difficulties for them, ”Shah wrote.
States with large migrant populations such as Bihar and Uttar Pradesh have received the maximum number of workers returning home on Shramik trains. West Bengal, according to senior officials, has received only two special trains from the specials so far and has not cleared any more trains. As of Friday, more than 250,000 migrants had been sent home on 251 Shramik trains.
The migrant worker issue is the latest critical point between the Center and the West Bengal government amid a dispute over the state’s efforts to control the coronavirus disease (Covid-19). The two sides have clashed over a visit by central inter-ministerial teams (IMCT) to assess the situation in seven districts of West Bengal. While the teams claimed that they did not obtain any support from the state government to evaluate the measures implemented to control Covid-19, the state government accused the Center of politicizing a public health crisis.
Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla also criticized the West Bengal government on Thursday for a very low test rate and a high death rate, 13.2%, the highest for any state. The Center also accused the Trinamool Congressional government of not allowing the cross-border movement of goods trucks to Bangladesh, which could jeopardize the trade commitments made with the neighbor.
Bengal has reported 1,678 positive Covid-19 cases and 160 deaths as of Saturday morning.
The internal affairs ministry has told all states that the interstate movement of migrant workers, students, pilgrims, and tourists who had moved from their home cities or workplaces before the coronavirus blockade took effect on 25 March and could not return due to restrictions, is allowed.
