Opposition paying lip service to migrant labourers issue: UP minister

Uttar Pradesh minister Shrikant Sharma on Sunday accused the opposition of merely paying lip service to the issue of migrant labourers.

Instead of coming forward to help the migrant labourers, opposition parties are simply doing lip service, the state power minister told reporters.

He also underlined the various initiatives taken by the Centre to mitigate the hardships of the migrant labourers who have been forced to move to their native villages in the wake of coronavirus-induced nationwide lockdown.

Sharma said the central government under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is doing its best for the welfare of people during such times.

He said free LPG cylinders have been given to 8.5 crore families with facility of free ration, without discriminating between a ration card holder and others.

He said the Union government is spending Rs 3,500 crore on free ration of migrant labourers, which would cover their needs for at least two months.

The government is running 1,034 trains for the safe journey of migrant labourers to their home and already 12 lakh migrants, mostly from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, have been sent to their destination, the minister said.

Taking a dig at the Congress, Sharma said the party leaders should acknowledge the slew of people-friendly measures taken by the Centre amid the outbreak of the pandemic.

He also termed the Auraiya accident wherein 25 migrant labourers lost their lives as unfortunate.