Central, state govts should apologise to nation for migrant workers' conditions: SP leader

Leader of Opposition in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly and senior Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Ramgovind Chaudhary asked the central and state governments on Wednesday to study the apex court order on the condition of migrant labourers and apologise to the nation for pushing them to such a sorry state of affairs.

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"The heads of the central and state governments should come out of their air-conditioned rooms for a few moments to study Tuesday's Supreme Court order. They should apologise to the country for pushing the labourers to such a bad condition," he said in a statement.

The observations of the apex court would bring tears to the eyes of even the most ruthless people, but the heads of the central and state governments and their officials are continuously ignoring them, Chaudhary said.

The judges said migrant labourers were sitting on roads, railway stations and state borders to reach their homes. There is no adequate transport arrangement for them nor are there provisions for their food and lodging, the SP leader pointed out.

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The judges stressed that effective steps were necessary to deal with the situation, he said.

Chaudhary alleged that the labourers in the country are in such a sorry state affairs because of the abrupt and unplanned decisions of the Centre and state governments and lack of coordination between them.

Such is the state of affairs that labourers are dying out of hunger even on Shramik special trains, he said, alleging that the government is lodging cases against those who have came out to provide food and water to the workers for the sake of humanity.