It is tragic our government has no data on the number migrants who died while on their way home by foot, during the initial lockdown. It seems the lives of the poor are not worth counting. Since the government doesn’t believe in any kind of data collection that has not been commissioned by it. It denies that there have been any migrant deaths during the pandemic-induced lockdown. This denial of reality by our esteemed government is not only brutal but also shabby disowning of its responsibilities in keeping the nation together in the middle of an unprecedented crisis. It was accentuated by the sudden announcement of total lockdown, with no contingent planning and preparations put in place to meet the inevitable fallout of such an abrupt move and affecting the most vulnerable sections. I was flabbergasted to read in the press about the solicitor general saying ”that no migrant was walking on the road.” This was contrary to the facts as all TV channels were covering live, labourers trudging long distances -- many of them hungry dehydrated, and walking barefoot under the blazing sun. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi reacted rightly tweeting ”if you have not counted, have the deaths not taken place? Also, how can the Government discount deaths that were recorded by its own Railway Ministry? Many migrants who died on Shramic trains that were organised much later to ferry them back home? Or were run over by trains as they fell asleep on the tracks, exhausted and beaten? More than 1400 road accidents killed 750 people including 198 migrant workers between March 25 and May 31st according to the newspaper reports.

On the one hand, the government had proudly announced a package of Rs 20 lakh crores, to meet the losses that occurred due to lockdown, along with infinite advertisements about it. On the other hand, it has simply denied sharing the actual position of migrant labourers. The working class along with the farmers are regarded as the backbone of the economy and if they remain unemployed, then the GDP of the nation will never and ever recover. The Government must seriously consider the situation as the GDP is at an all-time low, and the unemployment has broken all previous records. Till we value the laborers, recovery will be a chimera, a smart India a paper town. Besides, “atmanirbharata' can truly take off when we value and respect fellow human beings and not deny their existence.