COVID-19 Lockdown: SC Seeks Status Report From Centre On Migrant Workers' Exodus

The Supreme Court, on Monday, adjourned to Wednesday, its hearing of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) on the issue of providing food, shelter and medical assistance to thousands of migrant labourers fleeing the national capital. Similar scenes have been reported from several parts of the country after the nationwide lockdown was announced.

The apex court hearing was conducted via video conference. The Supreme Court is reported to have said that it did not wish to issue an order in the matter at this stage as the Centre was already tackling the issue. It sought a status report from the Union government and is likely to pronounce its order after the report is submitted.

A PIL on the issue of providing food, shelter and medical assistance to migrant workers fleeing places where there are employed to return to their hometowns in huge numbers, was filed in the apex court by Alok Srivastava, a senior lawyer. The Court conducted its first hearing in the matter on Monday.

The large-scale exodus of migrant labourers has grabbed headlines over the past few days. Moving scenes were played out by electronic media and also went viral on social media platforms. Thousands of labourers from the national capital, were seen walking towards their hometowns and towards bus terminals to head to their hometowns in other states, raising concerns on the spread of COVID-19.

In a stern move, the Centre issued directives to all states to seal borders and to provide food and shelter to migrants on the road. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) suspended two senior officials and issued show cause notices to 2 others of the Delhi government for dereliction of duty in the matter.