Migrants gathered near Ripon Buildings on Saturday and Sunday to request officials for transportation to reach their homes in other States.
The Greater Chennai Corporation has already helped 1.35 lakh migrants reach their homes in Bihar, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Jharkhand, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Nagaland, and Punjab. The civic body, police and other line agencies have assisted in the operation of 100 ‘Shramik Specials’ so far, with the government paying the rail fare.
For a fortnight, there were no trains from Chennai as they were stopped on June 23 and only resumed on July 8. However, just three trains have been operated till July 9. Police personnel had to help disperse migrant workers after they gathered near the Ripon Buildings over the weekend. Some said they had applied online and waited for two months to catch a train back home.
‘Help on the way’
Corporation Deputy Commissioner (Revenue and Finance) Meghanatha Reddy said officials have started identifying migrant labourers who visited Ripon Buildings to help them.
“We have provided shelter for 60 persons. We will make arrangements to send them home in buses or trains,” he said.
Volunteers helped supply food, ration kits and snacks to the migrant labourers ahead of their journey. “The volunteers helped a great deal. A few migrant workers, who came to the Central railway station hoping for a train, came to the Ripon Buildings to enquire about services,” Mr. Reddy said.
