Priyanka Gandhi slams UP govt over migrant issue; accuses govt of not providing transport

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Monday slammed the Uttar Pradesh government for not making proper arrangements to transport the migrant workers to their homes in Uttar Pradesh and said that if buses were arranged a month ago, the labourers would not have suffered.

This comes after Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath posed four questions to UP (East) Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. The latter has slammed the UP government for the ongoing migrant crisis in India, as lakhs of migrants return back to villages amid India's lockdown.

Taking to Twitter, she claimed that a large number of migrant labourers are waiting at Ramlila Maidan in Ghaziabad to go home and there is no system from the Uttar Pradesh government. She added that if a proper procedure to transport them had been established a month ago, the labourers would not have suffered so much

She claimed that the UP government did not give permission to transport migrant workers to their respective homes.

"Yesterday we arranged 1000 buses...talked to UP government. When we brought buses to the border, the UP government started doing politics and did not even give permission. The government is not ready to help people in distress. And if someone offers to help them it refuses," she said.

READ: Yogi slams Congress' 'aid to migrants', questions responsibility for Auraiya accident

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra earlier this week reiterated her demand that Uttar Pradesh government should deploy the roadways buses to take the stranded labourers to their native places. She claimed that 20,000 buses of the state are sitting idle and asked the Yogi government to put them into service. Since then she has arranged 1000 buses to take back migrants to different parts of UP.

"There is chaos on the roads of the country. The labourers are walking back home from the cities with their children and families on empty stomachs. It seems as if the system has forgotten them. Lakhs of labourers are on the roads braving the summer heat. Accidents are taking place every day," Priyanka said.

READ: Uttar Pradesh migrants break police barriers in Madhya Pradesh's Rewa to enter state

Uttar Pradesh's migrant rush

Earlier on May 17, Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Awanish Awasthi, revealed that 522 trains have brought 6.65 lakh migrant workers, from other states till date. Moreover, around 16.5 lakh migrants have returned till date amid lockdown. Apart from this, the government is currently, preparing a database of the skills of the incoming workers to provide employment to 20 lakh people as per their skills.

READ: Coronavirus Live Updates: As India enters Lockdown 4.0, COVID-19 cases rise to 96,169

Stranded migrants issue

After PM Modi had announced the first phase of lockdown, on March 28, thousands of migrant workers were seen thronging the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border at Delhi's Anand Vihar Interstate Bus Terminal in the hope of reaching their homes, defying lockdown and creating a health hazard. Similarly, after PM Modi announced the extension of the lockdown till May 3, on April 14, around 2,000 migrant workers gathered at Bandra station, under the illusion of boarding 'Jansdharan Express' trains to UP, Bengal and Bihar. Apart from this several visuals have been seen of thousands of migrants walking across state borders to reach their native homes due to loss of income amid lockdown. Three notable accidents too have occurred killing 82 such on-foot travelling migrants.

READ: Uttar Pradesh Minister slams Priyanka Gandhi over engaging in 'politics' over migrants