Accordingly over fourteen lakh packets of basic food supplies like rice and dal will be procured by the government of tamil Nadu soon, to be distributed to workers of the unorganised sector in the state. According to reports, 14.57 lakh kits will be procured through the state civil supplies corporation at a total cost of over Rs 93 crore and each kit will have 15 kilograms of rice, one kilogram each of dal and oil. These will be distributed to the workers who are registered members of the unorganised sector workers welfare boards through the district collectors.
The beneficiaries include over 24,000 registered migrant labourers, 40,000 non-registered migrant labourers and over 92,000 pensioners in the tamil Nadu Construction Workers’ Welfare Board. Furthermore the union government has also directed authorities to enrol unregistered workers in the unorganised sector immediately. Hundreds of workers hit the roads after the lockdown in various parts of the country in an attempt to return to their native towns and villages. Many were stranded without transport facilities, food, water or shelter.
While a few state governments arranged special buses to take them to their native places, many other state governments have housed them in government shelters with food, water and daily medical check-up to ensure none of them show symptoms of COVID-19. The chief minister of tamil Nadu has also warned employers of strict action if they fail to take care of their employees’ welfare during the time of a pandemic.
