India’s Coronavirus Lockdown Leaves Vast Numbers Stranded and Hungry – By Maria Abi-Habib and Sameer Yasir
In one of the biggest migrations in India’s modern history, hundreds of thousands of migrant laborers have begun long journeys on foot to get home, having been rendered homeless and jobless by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
With businesses shut down in cities across the country, vast numbers of migrants – many of whom lived and ate where they worked – were suddenly without food and shelter. Soup kitchens in Delhi, the capital, have been overwhelmed. So far, more than a dozen migrant laborers have lost their lives in different parts of the country as they tried to return to their home, hospital officials said.
Thousands of migrants in Delhi, including whole families, packed their pots, pans and blankets into rucksacks, some balancing children on their shoulders as they walked along interstate highways. Some planned to walk hundreds of miles. But as they reached the Delhi border, many were beaten back by the police.
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Social distancing is a privilege of the middle class. For India’s slum dwellers, it will be impossible – By Priyali Sur and Esha Mitra (Mar 30, 2020, CNN)
The Indian Police must understand that coronavirus cannot be beaten with a lathi – By Rohan Venkataramakrishnan (Mar 26, 2020, Scroll.in)
After the Lockdown, Fear and Chaos in India – By Pragya Tiwari (Mar 25, 2020, New York Times)
Keeping poor safe in lockdown is state responsibility, not an act of charity – By Christophe Jaffrelot, Utsav Shah (Mar 30, 2020, Indian Express)https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/coronavirus-india-lockdown-migrant-workers-labourers-exodus-modi-govt-6337630/
