International Migrants Day: Dignity Of Workers Must

"We must ensure dignity of all migrants workers," says Anand Pandit on International Migrants Day

The producer feels there is a need for collective outreach to help those most affected by the pandemic

On 18 December 1990, the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted a resolution for the protection of the rights of all migrant workers and members of their families. In 2020, the pandemic revealed just how vulnerable migrant populations and their livelihoods still are in a crisis. This year, on International Migrants Day, veteran producer Anand Pandit expressed his thoughts about the unrelenting challenges that migrant workers all over the country have had to face.

Says he, "This year, our migrant workers have been hit not just economically but right at the core of their humanity. What we have witnessed is a vast human tragedy. As fellow citizens, we must work together to ensure that the one thing that must be accorded to them at all times, is human dignity."

Earlier this year, when Pandit was busy completing the shoot of his Amitabh Bachchan and Emraan Hashmi starrer 'Chehre,' he saw first-hand the impact of the pandemic on the daily wage earners in the industry, many of whom were also migrants. After shutting down all filming operations, he extended financial aid to them and also ensured regular supplies of basic provisions.

But he says, such help need not be crisis-based and wants a system within the industry and outside that ensures the financial well-being of workers at all times.

He adds, "These are not just migrants or mere daily wage workers but stakeholders in small and big businesses. Without them, we would not be able to function as an industry. We must regulate our processes so that migrants and workers never have to face what they did in 2020."