Migrant workers denied pay, walks 1,000 km in 7 days to return Odisha

In a near rerun of the dark days of COVID lockdown, three destitute migrant workers from Odisha walked and hitch-hiked over 1,000 km to Koraput on their way home to Kalahandi from Bangalore in seven days.

They reached their homes on Sunday, their pockets empty and holding on only to their water bottles, with tales of struggle, hardships, exploitation and gestures of help from unknown people during the long journey.

The trio - Budu Majhi, Katar Majhi and Bhikari Majhi from Tingalkan village of Kalahandi district had undertaken the arduous journey after being denied their wages by their employer in far away Bengaluru. They had exhausted their meagre savings and had no food or money left.

On reaching Koraput, they told locals at Padalguda in Potangi block that they had started their journey on March 26 and walked even at night over the seven days. At some places they managed to get lifts.

Many people, touched by their ordeal came forward spontaneously and helped them. A shopkeeper offered them food, while the president of Potangi unit of Odisha Motorists Association, Bhagwan Padal gave them Rs 1,500 and arranged for their transport to Nabarangpur, which is on way to Kalahandi.

The three men were part of a 12-member group of migrant workers who had travelled to the southern city two months ago with the help of middlemen in search of jobs.

They found work after reaching Bengaluru but their employer allegedly denied them wages even though they worked for two months. When they asked for their pay they were thrashed, the trio said.

"We had gone to Bengaluru with the hope of earning money to support our families. But instead of paying our pending dues the company staff beat us whenever we asked for it. Unable to bear the torture any further, we left the place, Bhikari Majhi told PTI.

"The condition of the three migrants workers was pathetic when they reached Koraput by foot from Bengaluru. We offered them food, collected some money and sent them home with the help of a few people," Padal told PTI.

Congress lawmaker Santosh Singh Saluja, who hails from the backward KBK (Koraput-Bolangir-Kalahandi) said the incident was reflective of the condition of migrant workers from the region. Training his guns at the Naveen Patnaik government in Odisha, he said it has failed the people even after being in power for 23 years.

Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee president Sarat Patnaik told PTI that the government is spending crores to finance the travels of bureaucrats and politicians to Japan in the name of bringing in investment instead of bothering about poor people. The chief minister is on a tour to Japan.

Odisha Labour Minister Srikant Sahu and labour commissioner N Thirumala Naik did not respond to repeated calls or messages from PTI on the issue.