MMRDA says most migrants working on its projects in city are back, officials hope private enterprises also pick up pace soon
No. of labourers working on the Metro is now reaching almost pre-lockdown period. File pic
Migrants are back in huge numbers. As per the latest figures collated by both Central Railway (CR) and Western Railway (WR) since the partial lifting of the lockdown began, more than 25 lakh migrants have returned to Mumbai by trains so far from various states. While Rajdhani-type special trains began services from May 12, a limited number of special passenger trains began to ply from June 1 with reserved seats and COVID-19 protocols.
"Trains have been entering Mumbai from various states every day at regular intervals. On CR, there are 15 special trains going to the north and south and return back halting at stations like Kalyan, Thane, LTT and Mumbai CSMT. From the data of booked tickets and related statistics, a large number of passengers have entered the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) region and the number is in the range of 16.50 lakh on CR, with about 4 lakh in June, 6 lakh in July and 6.5 lakh in August 2020," a senior divisional official said. On WR too, there has been a similar trend with about 9,47,560 passengers entering Mumbai at two of its stations Mumbai Central Terminus and Bandra Terminus between May 12 and August 31.
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Majority of the migrants went back to their hometown soon after nationwide lockdown was declared in March. File Pic
Migrants have been the backbone of the city's economy and construction activities – more so with the several infrastructure works in progress in the MMR. During a media event on Thursday, MMRDA officials also said that most of the labourers working on the Metro lines are returning at a steady speed and the numbers were now reaching almost pre-lockdown period. Most of the other companies hiring them are now looking after their work safety and local transport connectivity to retain them.
"The return of migrants to the city is a good sign to get the economy back on track soon. It will be at an individual level to maintain discipline and continue their contributions," National Railway Users' Consultative Committee member Subhash Gupta said.
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