Pics: Spoorthi Ullal

Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (SP)

Mangaluru, May 11: MLC, Ivan D'Souza, addressing a press meet here on Monday May 11 on the issue of arranging for the return of migrant workers stranded in Karnataka to their native places, said that it is the duty of the administration to arrange for the train journeys of all the workers stuck in the district.

He accused the central government of collecting money from the worker for their home-bound journey. He stated that Rs 40 was collected from each of the passenger towards KSRTC bus fare and Rs 960 towards railway fare.

Ivan stated that the district administration had clearly violated the directions of the government on the issue of facilitating safe return of the migrant workers. He pointed out that the government had instructed that those who are willing to return should apply by filling application and filing the same online through Seva Sindhu app. He charged the district administration of not conforming to this condition.

He said that the migrant workers were shifted to the railway station without providing any security, and of collecting charges from them at the railway station. "The official claim is that there is an order to that affect. But none of them know who had issued this order. The central government has collected Rs 150 crore from the railway department. But here, it has collected train fare and money for food from the poor workers," he observed.

Ivan advised Dakshina Kannada MP Nalin Kumar Kateel, to rise to the occasion and raise his voice against this injustice. He asked the MP to become the voice of unorganized workers and come out into the open to solve inter-state problems by raising the topic.