As COVID-19 Rages, the Road Ahead for Migrant Workers in Himachal Looks Bleak
The migrant labourers working in the hilly state fear a repeat of what they had seen during the first wave of the pandemic.
Migrant workers from Chhattisgarh working in Himachal Pradesh catching a train from Amritsar with the help of Highway Help volunteers. Photo: Special arrangement.
Labour6 hours ago
In the third week of April, Indiaâs raging pandemicâs second wave burst onto our phone screens with aerial images of burning pyres in crematoriums. Not very far away in the upper reaches of Pangi in Himachal, temperatures hit a sudden low due to heavy snowfall. Five migrant workers lay huddled in blankets on the floor of a public toilet of a local bus stand. They were among a group of 20 who had just entered the area to work for a contractor. They were âisolatedâ after they tested positive for COVID-19.