Nothing eases suffering like Human Touch: Migrants are also human beings

by news
•
May 15, 2020

By Lal Goel

Today the biggest challenge India is facing due to COVID-19 is of Migrants. Several lakhs of Migrants are on road moving towards their native place on foot. PM Sri Narendra Modi in his speech on 12th May specially announced that the financial package will benefit Migrants.

Yesterday in the second part of the stimulus package Finance Minister announced a ? 3.16 lakh crore package of free food grains for migrant workers, concessional credit to farmers, and working capital loan for street vendors. It is a welcome move.

But the ground situation is not that rosy. Migrants want to go to their native place in spite of PM Modi’s appeal to them to stay where they are. This is human nature that whenever there is a crisis people remember their own families.
Is there no solution to this problem. This is not the time for the blame game. We have to handle the situation with Human Touch.

In my first article in this series, it was mentioned that India Can Raise about 25 lakhs Crores of Rupees from:

  • Issue of bonds
  • Religious Trusts (90% Cash and Gold)
  • Amnesty for economic offenders
  • Amnesty for NPAs

In a follow-up article, I mentioned that India should raise confidence in people by giving them direct benefit by withdrawing taxes on Petroleum Products for 3 months

Solve the Migrants problem in 24 Hours – Heres how!

  • Central Govt should appoint 4 nodal officers under Labour Ministry to look after East, West, North & South Zone. Immediately they will contact all the district nodal officers keeping state nodal officers in the loop. Transfer ? 2 Crores to all the districts where migrants are coming or leaving. 
  • District nodal officers through local decorators and caterers can provide temporary accommodation and food (By making immediate payment to these agencies) at all the District borders from where Migrants are entering or leaving.
  • All Roadways Buses to be used on such borders. As soon as any Migrants reach the border they should be treated as guests by providing them with the food and then sending them on to the next border from where they have to cross into another district.
  • This district will also receive them as guests and after providing them food send them onwards.
  • In this way, migrants will get meals and rest at the shelter and reach their home district without any trouble.
  • At their home districts, the Migrants should be sent to a Quarantine Centre.
  • The District Nodal Officer should take over, all government & private colleges, Marriage Halls, etc and convert them into Quarantine Centres. The beds can be taken from local decorators.
  • The sanitation and food for the Quarantine Centres should be outsourced with strict quality control.
  • In India, we have 739 Districts.  if even 500 Districts are having Migrants then Government has to give 1000 Crores to solve this problem at once.

This way, we can remove the misery of Migrants within 24 hrs. After all, Migrants are also human beings like us. They are the foundation of our country. With them only Industry can work, Infrastructure development can take place. So please treat them as your own family and give them the dignity which they deserve. After all, the fight is not between anyone but Satan and Humanity…(To be continued)

About the Author

Mr. Lal Goel is the Chairman of the Organ Donation Foundation with more than five decades of Business Experience. He is also the Chairman of Global Youth Activity Network (GYAN), a newly formed entity to promote Indian Youth to take up leadership roles. He has created a transformation in organ donation awareness in India and has traveled across the country and overseas to involve leaders from various areas in his organ donation awareness campaign. He has done more than a hundred TV episodes in his Organ Donation Awareness Campaign and COVID 19 Series.