COVID-19 has severely crippled even most developed nations as such India is also trying its best to channelize its resources to mitigate the sufferings of its citizens not only residing in India but living in other countries also. For interstate return of migrant workers special trains and buses have been arranged with the help of scores of officials in every state trying to get their people back as wheels of economy will take time to move and these stuck up persons not only require ration to feed but gas to cook, money for medicines, school tuition fee, books and numerous other small daily house hold items which to arrange in the absence of regular income seems to be a herculean task for them.
Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir also acted swiftly in announcing the action plans for safe return of its persons stuck in other states but unfortunately there is no visible action plan for return of thousands of local persons who are stuck in inter districts of UT itself. No officers have been assigned except that few districts are entertaining online requests but only on emergency medical ground or death cases. Thousands of people from snow bound winter zone of UT come to plain areas of Jammu, Udhampur, Samba and Kathua for earning some livelihood during winters to support their families back home and return back in summers to take up agricultural activities which provide them basic food throughout the year. Some stuck up are elderly people who avoid winters at their home places. Majority of these persons act as dihadi mazdoors or work in industrial units on daily wages but in the absence of any of these activities since lockdown, these helpless persons have right now nothing in their pockets to survive upon. Most unfortunate are the patients who have come all the way from far flung areas along with their family members for immediate medical procedures but are struck at Jammu due to sudden lockdown within few hours. These persons are mainly staying with their relatives or on rent with seriously ill patients with them who require regular money for medicines also but now with third lockdown in place all their local resources have just gone on daily survival.
In view of their practical miserable condition all of stuck persons are calling sarpanches or relatives to get them back. Every one of them is running from pillar to post to get some official help but futile are their whole efforts in the absence of clear cut instructions from the administration as no nodal officer is yet assigned to look into their genuine cases. No public announcement on the part of administration is just adding to their woes with no immediate visible way out. It’s not story of one district but every far flung area of UT has few thousand stuck in some other district, some even at Leh, Nobra and Shey. In the prevailing situation one expects administration to look into the matter compassionately and workout an immediate return plan of these helpless inter district locals and patients. Appointment of nodal officers is the need of the hour as all these can be easily home quarantined at their native places and as such one hope authorities will take instant decisive policy decision in this matter as well.
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