More Notes On Lockdown Relief Efforts

HHERE is another quick round-up from the states, of the relief work CPIML comrades are engaged in. These are extraordinary times. CPIML comrades are rising to the occasion helping not only stranded migrant workers but communities all over India who have been plunged into hunger by the lockdown. The draconian nature of the lockdown imposed by the BJP Government is also encouraging feudal and communal forces to indulge in violence against vulnerable communities. Apart from the reports below, we still await reports from UP, Uttarakhand, Tripura, and other states – these will follow in the next issue of Update.

Corona Relief Campaign: West Bengal

Like many other states Covid-19 has struck hard in West Bengal and the number of affected victims is increasing day by day. Under the presently imposed nationwide unplanned lockdown, millions of daily wage earners, migrant laboureres, urban poors, slum dwellers, rural agricultural laborers, workers of tea gardens/ jute mills/ closed factories, tribal and marginalized population of the state are facing pervasive challenges for their livelihood.

In various parts of West Bengal comrades are arranging emergency relief distribution amongst poor and vulnerable sections who are under extreme distress. The relief packages announced by central or state governments have failed to ensure home delivery of ration or mid day meals and there is much ambiguity in distribution of food or other essentials via PDS. Our comrades have received numerous complaints of unavailability or inadequate supply of food grains in ration shops as well as black marketing and illegal storage in districts like Nadia, North 24 Parganas, Kolkata etc. Our Party Comrades along with the mass organizations have formed area specific small volunteer groups in various districts to keep strict vigilance on transparency in PDS, to maintain liaisoning with administration in ward/ block/ district level, to arrange essential relief services on emergency basis, and also to spread scientific awareness, precautions and health directives for prevention of community infection.

Throughout the state, Comrades participated in pledge solidarity campaign in their localities on the day of Janta Curfew (22nd March) demanding free Test, development of public health infrastructure, PPE for all health workers, subsistence livelihood compensation, home delivery of ration and mid day meal for all. Volunteer comrades from Bengal are also coordinating with the national Help Lockdown Affected team to help stranded migrant workers. Multiple deputations and charter of demands have been placed to the CM and the respective Ministers for safeguarding the livelihoods in this critical situation.

Hooghly

Unorganized sector workers are one of the worst hit victims in this unplanned lockdown. Our volunteers in Uttarpara Rishra area have provided helpline numbers to local inhabitants for any emergency and offered voluntary service to the local Municipality for any relief work especially in need of poor construction workers and other unorganized sectors. With help from the empathetic citizens, they arranged emergency ration kits for 16 daily wagers families in Ward No. 2 of Uttarpara- Kotrang Municupality and Ward No. 19 and 6 in Konnagar Municipality.

AICCTU affiliated Poschimbongo Griho o Onyanyo Nirman Shromik Sangathan has organized sensitization programmes and distributed soaps and disinfectants amongst construction workers and toto drivers in Netaji Park, Bandal area. Their demands for relief packages were also placed to the District Magistrate.

 

AIARLA and Sara Bangla Adivasi Odhikar o Vikash Manch have submitted relief applications for 312 families of poor agricultural labourers and tribals of Kamalpur, Harisalpur, Boral, Baksagarh, Saira, Ilampur, Icchapur, Dyamorgram, Karinya, Byatna villages of Balagarh Block in Hooghly district to the BDO office. Comrades also arranged ration kits for 6 families in Talbona, Konuibanka and Bhandarhati village who had almost no provision for survival. 16 distressed families received relief from Dhaniakhali Police Station only after our comrades from AIARLA, AISA, RYA and Adivasi Vikas Manch moved with their demands for ration supply to the BDO.

CPIML and AISA comrades run a free coaching centre for students in Workers Colony of closed jute mills in Chandannagar Gondolpara area. These families mostly with minimal or zero earning sustain under extremely vulnerable condition. Our comrades from Chandannagar and Baidyabati organized and distributed foodgrains and essentials to 50 families in the area with help of some concerned citizens and well wishers.

A rice meal in Bainchi, Hooghly district was selling rice on much higher price taking advantage of this precarious situation. Our volunteers raised the issue to the local Panchayet and BDO. This timely intervention made him sell rice at normal rate under pressure from the BDO.

Howrah

We have witnessed the plight of migrant workers who are stranded in various state and are being forced to walk back to their villages without money and other resources. More than 300 migrant workers including few of our comrades were on their way to Assam from Maharashtra and got stuck in Howrah Station on 25th March as lockdown announced and trains got cancelled all of a sudden. Station authority and administration were trying hard to throw them out and evacuate the station. Only after our intervention and consistent pressure they were allowed to stay at station and food was arranged. After our deliberations in various administrative levels and negotiation with the state government, finally 3 buses were arranged for those workers upto Guwahati.

 

In Ramrajatala- Jagachha area, with the help of general public, Construction worker Comrades of AICCTU organized awareness campaign and distributed essential food materials to extremely needy and vulnerable families.
AISA and CPIML volunteer team in Bally Belur area stood in social solidarity maintaining physical distancing and health precautions. Essential food items were packaged and delivered to deprived families in the region. Simultaneously, awareness campaign was run in order to control the global pandemic.

North 24 Parganas

The conditions of worker colonies of Jute Mills and Brick Kilns are very unhygienic and unhealthy. To control the outbreak of Corona pandemic, provision of personal hygiene essentials like soap, optimum water are required. AICCTU raised these issues to the Jute mill and Brick Kiln owners for preventing mass gathering, ensuring timely wage and ration and maintaining cleanliness in the worker colonies.

Party activists met with the in charge of Ashok Nagar PS to ensure fair distribution of ration items as announced in state relief programmes, to stop all black marketing or illegal storage of food grains and also to avoid over-crowding or any mismanagement during ration distribution in 76 ration shops of the block. CPIML also arranged essential ration kit for daily labourer families in the locality.

Nadia

PDS in Nadia is still not very transparent in terms of distribution of food items in adequate quantity. Our Comrades raised objections when they found only 2 kg of rice was provided in one ration shop in Gaccha and 2 kg rice along with 2 packets of wheat flour (850 g) were given in a ration shop at Muragaccha, whereas the declared quantity is 5 Kg.

AICCTU comrades organized relief campaigns for unorganized workers in Krishnannagar and also appealed in local Police Station with a list of 27 poor families in the locality. The families received ration from the police authority on the next day preceded by our initiative.

 

Relief drives are also being conducted from Dhubulia Party office where poor and daily earners are provided basic food materials.

In Gohrapota village of Kaliyaganj, Comrade Arshad donated 2000 rupees from his disability pension which is the only earning for his family and arranged ration for 30 poor people by himself. In this time of despair and grief, Comrades like Arshad are like glaring ray of hope.

Kolkata

Comrades from AISA, RYA and Kolkata Nagarik Samanway have formed a volunteer team in Jadavpur Dhakuria region for any emergency need during this lockdown. A relief campaign has been launched where ration and essentials items were arranged for local cycle rickshaw pullers in collaboration with local police, councilors and concerned citizens. Relief programmes run for migrant workers from ward offices are being strictly monitored to ensure fair and equal distribution. Additionally, till date 150 ration kits have been distributed from our local party office to the needy families. Awareness campaign and sanitizers distributed in slum areas beside Jadavpur station and Kalitala area in Behala where people are forced to live in crowded and unhygienic condition. Ration kits were also distributed in Behala 121 ward.

 

Numerous unorganized sector workers who have lost their jobs during this lockdown are yet to receive any concrete relief package as compensatory livelihood provisions from state or central government on ground. AISA comrades in Metiabruz have arranged food kits for 50 such families in slum areas in Metiabruz and Taratala.

CPIML and AICCTU comrades in Banshdroni stood by 5 families of migrant workers from Bihar who got stranded in Renia area due to this lockdown having no supply of ration as they don’t have ration cards. As local councilor and police refused to provide any ration supply, our comrades communicated with the labour minister of the state. Essential food items for the stranded workers were arranged by the local party volunteers.

Bankura

Rural peasants are suffering from huge loss due to this unplanned lockdown. Lack of adequate number of vehicles has led to slowdown in marketing crops and vegetables, as well as wastage and spoilage. In Ola-Nikunjapur Market in Onda Block, farmers are forced to sell their vegetables at much lower rate as they cannot send those to market due to unavailability of vehicles. Even after repetitive appeal and communication to the Ministry no compensatory measure is being taken. The issue of people without ration cards being denied ration from PDS was also raised as their applications got rejected at block office.

North Bengal

Despite of declaration of nationwide lockdown, more than 300 tea gardens in North Bengal kept open as there was no official circular from state government. In a deputation to the CM, AICCTU demanded immediate closure of all large and small tea gardens, salaried and waged leave for all permanent, contractual and irregular workers, supply of free ration and essential items to worker families of all running and closed tea gardens with immediate effect.

In addition to this, CPIML Volunteer team in Siliguri is supplying essential items like medicine or food items to the ill and elderly persons.

East Burdwan

A number of workers from Burdwan district go to Kerala to earn their livelihoods. Com. Ibrahim sheikh, also a district committee member of AIARLA, is one of those 500 workers who got stuck across 14 various regions of Kerala during this lockdown. Comrade Sheikh is playing a crucial role in co-ordinating relief woks among the stranded workers in Kerala hailing from East Burdwan district. The situation in equally grave in various districts of Bengal. 4 such workers walking from Barasat to reach their village at Salar, met with our Comrades at Faleya and narrated how they have been subjected to exploitation, abuse and hunger in this lockdown.

In Kusumgram of Manteswar Block, our efforts and timely initiative stopped black marketing and overpricing of essential goods in grocery shops by big whole sellers. Police arrested the person and seized 200 sacks of rice.

Medical Team

A 24X7 medical team of doctors, nurses and health workers has been formed by initiative of CPIML and Forum for Peoples Health for any emergency medical query, suggestion or help during Corona lockdown.

Food Packet Distribution in Patna

On 6 April 2020 CPIML and AICCTU with help from NGOs distributed about 1100 food packets among 400 families of poor workers and Manjhi and other Mahadalits in Patna, capital of Bihar, at places including Buddhamurti, Lohanipur, Rajendra nagar Mahmudichak Manjhi Tola, Ramakrishna Nagar Bhupatipur Manjhi Tola, rickshaw, handcart and Tempo drivers and urban poor in Kankarbagh.

CPIML State Secretary Kunal, AIPWA leader and Rasoiya Sangh General Secretary Saroj Chaube, CC member Prakash Kumar, State Office Joint Secretary Sunil Kumar and others from the Party office in Jagatnarayan Road distributed 750 food packets among 225 Mahadalit and poor families at Eastern Lohanipur and Buddhamurti with the help of NGOs.

CC member and AICCTU National Secretary Ranvijay Kumar and Jitendra Kumar distributed 250 food packets among 90 Mahadalit poor families in Mahmudichak (Rajendra Nagar). Patna City Committee members distributed 130 food packets among 35 families in Bhupatipur Manjhi Tola (Ramakrishna Nagar); and AICCTU distributed food packets among 25 rickshaw, Thela and Tempo drivers in Ashok Nagar (Kankarbagh).

 

Tempos and rickshaws are off the streets in Patna city due to the lockdown, causing distress to the drivers who depend on daily earnings for their livelihood. Bihar State Auto Rickshaw Chalak Sangh (affiliated to AICCTU) with the help of the Disaster Management department distributed chivda-jaggery packets among tempo drivers in Chitkohra and Tata Park, led by Bihar State Auto Ricksahw Chalak Sangh General Secretary Murtaza Ali, Naveen Mishra, Satendra Gope, Bindi Chaudhury, Mohd Shakeel, AIPWA leader and ASHA Sangh President Shashi Yadav, Abida Khatoon and others.

CPIML-AICCTU have demanded that one month’s dry rations and Rs 1000 should be distributed to all unorganized workers and jhuggi dwellers.

 

In a statement issued on 6 April, AICCTU National Secretary Ranvijay Kumar gave details of the food packet distribution and said that the CPIML Patna City Committee has submitted a memorandum to the Patna Collector attaching a first list of 238 non-ration card holding poor. The memorandum demands that food-centers should be opened within the Patna Municipal area between Zero Mile and Asinabad at Transport Nagar, Khemnichak, Ramakrishna Nagar, Beur, Ashiana and at Digha Road in Bhola Paswan, Shastri Bhavan, Baans Kothi and other places which have dense populations of construction workers and daily wage workers. The memorandum also demands that the workers named in the list of 238 non-ration card holders should be given equal facilities and Rs 1000 as ration-card holders are being given.

AICCTU leader Ranvijay Kumar said that the memorandum submitted to the Collector especially says that CPIML activists and leaders would like to volunteer for helping the District administration in aiding poor workers and preventing the global pandemic Coronavirus.

Relief Efforts in Odisha

The Odisha government, and then the government of India declared a lockdown without planning anything for working class, farmers, street vendors, and the poor. Due to the lockdown many migrant workers from Jharkand, Bihar, Chattisgarh, West Bengal were not able to return to their respective states from Odisha. Locked down at their respective places they are not able to get sufficient food and rations, and there is no awareness programme as to how to protect themselves from Covid-19. After pressure from the different political parties and trade unions the government of Odisha declared some packages to mitigate the problems of underprivileged. As on today in Odisha there are 42 Covid-19 positives cases found and 1 death and there are around 4000 patients in isolation centers. The government declared package comprises:

1. 3 months advanced ration
2. 1000 Rs to 92 lakhs families
3. Rs 3000 support 65000 state vendors in different NAC and municipality areas.
4. Rs 1500 support to 22 lakhs construction workers
5. 1000 bed Covid-19 hospital open through private hospital
6. 3 Hospitals declared as a Testing centers
7. Establish control room to address the problems of migration labor inside state and outside state.
8. Rs 20 enhancement on NREGA (Rs 204)

Though the state has declared rations to poor families during the lockdown, the government is not able to distribute to all the households, not able to address 1,50,000 Odiya migrant workers stranded at different states like Maharasthra, Chattisgarh, West Bengal, Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, etc, nor the 30,000 migrant labor from different states like Jharkand, West Bengal, Bihar, Chattisgarh stranded in Odisha. Due to the lockdown, farmers and agricultural labourers also are suffering, and standing crops ready for the harvest are rotting in fields.

CPIML Liberation and AICCTU, along with CPI(M), CPI, and Forward Block submitted a memorandum of 10 points to Chief Minister of Odisha to intervene in the matter.

AICCTU intervened to provide food and ration to different migrant workers struck in Odisha at Bhubaneswar, Jagatpur (Cuttack), Jagatsinghpur (Borikina), Dhenkenal. Jharsuguda, Sundargarh from the states like Jharkhand, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal. Around 700 workers actively coordinated with AICCTU Odisha for providing food and ration. AICCTU Odisha coordinated with Labor Secretary, Labor Commissioner, District Labor Officer, Divisional Labor Commissioner, District Magistrate to support the workers, and intervened through AICCTU National Lockdown Relief team and other state level groups to help around 1500 Odiya migrant laborers and help them to get food and ration at different states like Maharashtra, Telangana, Gujarat, Bihar etc.

AICCTU demanded from the Labour Secretary  and Chief Minister of Odisha to issue notification to the employers not to retrench wage cut of the workers during lockdown periods and the employer will provide foods to the workers at different brick line points. Government of Odisha issued notice to the employers to make the provisions suggested by AICCTU and other central trade unions.

Tamil Nadu Relief Efforts

The totally unplanned and whimsical Lockdown of 21 days declared by Modi forced the migrant workers who neither had any earnings nor were able to return to their native places, into victims of poverty and hunger. The immediate victims were the migrants from other states working in Tamil Nadu and also the out-migrant Tamils who went out in search of some employment or other. There is no word to describe the plight of these migrant workers, that transcended their state, language, caste, creed and religion. The caste divide was quite obvious and evident. In some places like Tirupur and Coimbatore in Tamilnadu, an industrial hub for hosieries and textiles, non-Tamil migrant workers rallied in protest in thousands demanding food and shelter.

All movements of individuals, organisations, trade unions and even political parties came to a complete standstill because of Lockdown. Activists were unable to function as usual, in their conventional methods of mobilisation as only tools to pressurise the government. It was next to impossible to meet and help suffering workers. Government machinery too was totally lethargic and deeply entrenched by by red-tapism. Some philanthropic organisations and individuals were supplying some food packets here and there but was completely insufficient to meet the demand of thousands and thousands of workers.

It is in this situation, CPIML – AICCTU launched an online platform to address the sufferings of migrant workers all over the country. In Tamil Nadu, a task force was formed comprising Comrades Chandra Mohan, Varadhan and Desikan. Social media was effectively put into service, on the one hand, to petition and pressurise authorities and on the other hand to reach out to the migrant workers scattered all over the state and the country. References of several cases, mainly from states like Jharkhand, Assam, West Bengal, Odisha and Bihar started flowing in from other states through online platform of AICCTU.

Many of these workers also had to face police lathis, particularly those stranded around Chennai Central railway station. Finally, administration started arranging food and shelter but not supplying rations but for some rare and exceptional cases. Migrant workers were also scared to join the camps fearing fast spread of Corona in crowded places. As migrant workers also had some skeleton arrangements like rented tin roofed rooms, etc., they chose to stay in those places rather than joining camps. So, arranging ration for them was left only to some philanthropists, generous individuals and communist organisations like us. Such category of workers who were in need of rations were the majority who approached us.

Scores of poorly paid workers employed temporarily in hotels, garages, workshops, construction sites and under contractors in many manufacturing units were abandoned in the wake of Corona Lockdown and were left to take care of themselves in Chennai, Kanchipuram, Chengalpattu and Thiruvallur districts. This category also formed another major section that approached us.

Thousands of workers employed in small garment and hosiery units of Coimbatore and Tirupur were another major chunk that needed our assistance.

We also addressed issues of Tamil migrant workers stranded in states like Maharashtra, Kerala and Karnataka.

In order to address the problems of lockdown affected workrs, we adopted a combination of methods such as –

1. Pressurizing the government to provide relief to affected migrant workers.


2. Pressurising the company managements and contractors to provide groceries, rations, etc to begin with, to grant Corona holidays and to make payment for the Lockdown period.


3. Seeking cooperation and assistance from some philanthropic groups like the one run by Mr Nityanand Jayaraman, TM Krishna and few others in Chennai.


4. Sending our own comrades to possible sites where such workers could be reached and sort out their problems either by supplying food, rations and in exceptional cases, some monetary contributions too.

I all this endeavor we could also make a good use of the social media.

Some Notable Actions

1. We began with submitting a Corona–Lockdown Relief Charter to the state and central governments. The same charter was submitted at district level by meeting the District Collectors (DM/ DC). Complaints and petitions were also filed through whatsapp and social media and thus were brought to the notice of the concerned officials.


2. Such demands of workers were forwarded to CM, Health Minister, relief camp incharges, volunteers and the media. We were successful in utilising social media to resolve the issues of workers.


3. In places like Kodambakkam, Red Hills, Kalpakkam, etc., our own comrades and friends took some effort to address their issues.


4. In places where we were not able to reach, we also deposited money in the accounts of migrant workers to buy ration themselves.


5. In Tirupur and Coimbatore, as the issues involved were of few hundreds, we could employ the services of the government through our own comrades and friends. In Malumichampatti area of Coimbatore where several hundreds of slum dwellers were residing in alternate housing schemes, we tried to supply food. In Dindigul, the granite company management was forced to pay Rs 20,000 to 13 workers from Odisha.


6. Around 500 Tamil migrant workers who got held up at Bandarpur, Maharashtra, were allotted food and shelter as comrades in AICCTU played a major role in providing them relief.


7. Around 150 brick kiln workers of Kalvarayan Malai, Kallakurichi district who went to Kottayam, Kerala got stranded. Our comrades took the lead in getting them the essential items.


8. Sugarcane cutters of Dharmapuri who went to Mandya were allotted shelter and food by the government because of persistent efforts by our comrades.


9. In a construction company called Casa Grand, more than 30 workers were employed under one particular contractor. We spoke to the principal employer Casa Grand also and are in the process of ensuring Rs 100 per day per head for this set of workers.

Till now, we have handled more than 45-50 cases involving few thousands of migrant workers in areas in and around Chennai, Coimbatore and Tirupur. All these are because of our online platform and usage of a combination of efforts as explained above. It is an interesting experience that we have tried our level best to reach out to the suffering migrant workers through social media, for the first time and are also successful to some extent in reaching them out.

Experiences from Assam

1. In the Tea garden areas the main problem is after lockdown tea workers are not getting weekly or fortnightly wages and rations. Our tea workers union (ASCSS) took the initiative to pressurise government and the labour commission to immediately pay wages and rations.


2. In some areas particularly in Teok of Jorhat district our comrades collected money, rice and other food stuff and distributed it among workers. In Salbari tea garden we distributed 2kg rice, 1kg potato, tomato and dal among 57 family. Likewise in Hindubari garden we distributed rations to some family. Due to our pressure administration is bound to give Rs 1000/ in cash those who have no ration or other cards in about two villages in Teok. The administration deposited Rs 500 in accounts of Jan Dhan account holders in the same villages, but the majority have no ATM card and many could not go to ATM counter because they could not go far enough to find an ATM.


3. In Duliajan of Dibrugarh we prepared a list of 200 families who have no ration cards and forwarded it to the Government agencies. Due to our pressure all the listed person got rations with our intervention. This was done particularly in Lengri and Rongsongia Gaon panchayat. Likewise we prepared a list of 300 people who have no ration card and submitted to Government office. Due to this effort in Sarojoni tea garden about 57 families got rations, which was distributed by our workers.


4. In Bihali of Biswanath district, we are conducting a Branch wise survey to identify the extremely poor families; the sick, old persons, pregnant women etc and distributing ugent relief accordingly by mobilising resources within the Branch area


5. In Bilotia no -1 and Bilotia-2 village in Dhing of Nagoan, we distributed relief to nearly 200 families (mostly from the minority community). In Botodraba and Dhing of Nagoan we demanded that the government authorities must openly display the charts of non card holder under NFC in panchayats, to prevent discrimination in government distribution.

Report from Mirzapur, UP

Poor families without ration-Adhaar-job cards were denied free rations by the Pradhan-Kotedar in Hardimishra village, Patehara Block, Mirzapur District despite government orders to distribute free rations to all including those without cards. In addition, the poor who had only MNREGA job cards were made to pay for rations instead of getting it free. The village Pradhan refused to accept any list prepared by the people or their representatives which included card-less poor.

The deprived families related their woes to CPIML State Committee member and AIARLA District President Jeera Bharti who spoke to the Collector, after which the same Kotedar had to give free rations to the card-less poor families. Through this initiative, 11 families without cards and 25 job-card holding families were given free rations.

Similar efforts are being made in 5-6 other Gram Sabhas to ensure free rations to all the poor. Rations and relief materials have been distributed in Rae Bareli, Mau, Ghazipur, Sitapur, Azamgarh, Moradabad and initiatives have been taken for benefits announced through schemes like Jan-Dhan, Ration Card, Ujjwala etc reach the poor and needy.

It should be noted that the Yogi government is trying to solve the current crisis through its usual ‘Lathi, Danda and repression’ methods. Medical personnel demanding PPE have been sacked. There is a grave shortage of PPE across the State and salaries of medical personnel are pending, obstructing proper treatment of patients during this horrific pandemic. AICCTU has demanded through a memorandum that pending salaries should be paid immediately, sacked medical personnel at Banda should be immediately reinstated, and PPEs should be immediately made available to all medical staff and health care workers.

Report from Nainital, Uttarakhand

A list was prepared under by CPIML Nainital City in-charge Kailash Joshi of families who most needed relief during the lockdown period. Comrades and supporters then distributed essential materials to the needy.

In this hour of crisis the State government clings to its religious agenda and is going full throttle with preparations for the Haridwar Kumbh for which the Center has allotted Rs 375 crores. The Party has condemned this and sent a memorandum to the Chief Minister that the serious shortage of essential medical equipment and PPEs should be first addressed by the government. Rations and medicines are the biggest need in this area which is geographically difficult and remote. In this crisis, the government should abandon its communal agenda and concentrate on people’s relief and welfare.

Report from Aurangabad, Maharashtra

AICCTU leader Budhinath Baral conveyed concerns to the tehsildar and collector of Aurangabad, Maharashtra of more than 2500 migrant workers from Jharkhand, Odisha, TN, and West Bengal working in Gangapur Taluka of the district. He told the tehsildar that the workers are starving and in need of rations urgently, due to the lockdown. Comrade Baral was asked by the tehsildars of Gangapur and Baijapur to provide volunteers, which AICCTU did. 32 volunteers got passes and helped migrants access government relief rations.