WB govt forms team of nodal officers for smooth movement of migrants, stranded people

The West Bengal government has formed a team of nodal officers to coordinate with other states to ensure a hassle-free movement of migrants and other people stranded due to the lockdown.

A source in the secretariat said on Monday that the Trinamool Congress government has prepared a database of migrant population stuck outside due to the countrywide lockdown and shared it with states concerned.

The team of senior IAS officers will stay in touch with officials in other states to facilitate a smooth journey for all outbound and inbound people, he said.

"Senior IAS officials have been appointed as members of the team. They will coordinate with their counterparts in other states and facilitate the movement of migrant labourers, pilgrims, students, tourists and others stuck due to the lockdown," the source said.

The team members include: Additional chief secretaries M V Rao and Sunil Gupta; higher education secretary Manish Jain; state transport secretary P K Mishra; Jalpaiguri divisional commissioner Ajit Bardhan; personnel & administrative reforms (PAR) secretary Arnab Roy and West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (WBSEDCL) MD Santanu Basu.

The WBSEDCL MD has been appointed as the nodal officer for Jharkhand, while the transport secretary will coordinate with Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, the source said.

The Jalpaiguri divisional commissioner has been entrusted with the responsibility of northeast states.

The two additional chief secretaries will be overseeing arrangements in Delhi, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnakata.

The PAR secretary has been made the nodal officer for Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh and J&K, and the tribal development secretary for Odisha.