Coronavirus: 25 Starving Homeless Families Stuck in Assam's Nalbari, Pray for 'Achche Din'

Mukalmua, April 1, 2020:

With the 21-day nationwide lockdown sending the country deeper into one of the greatest economic crisis in recent memory, the poor and the downtrodden (especially hand-to-mouth labourers) have found themselves thrust into the limelight because of the Government's inability to address their concerns. Scores across the country, from milkmen in Tripura to migrant labourers from Assam trapped in neighbouring states, find themselves staring at death due to starvation amid the 'coronavirus lockdown'.

The poor, finding it difficult to arrange two square meals per day, have been brought to their knees. So much so that despite the dangers posed by the coronavirus, a question is being raised: does it make sense to impose a lockdown in a country where a vast number of the population consists of migrant laborers?

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In Assam, the plight of the poor is exemplified by the condition of 25 homeless families, stranded in the middle of nowhere in Mukalmua's Shanirud. These families, led by tradesmen and women from Hojai who came with several kids, are reportedly spending days without proper food and sanitation. In a tiny makeshift camp they have erected, social distancing is a distant concept.

These people, nomadic and struggling for survival without any fixed address, are now having to deal with the added burden of the economic slowdown and the search for food and grain -- usually with futility. These people, having lived in this state for several years, belong to an eclectic array of professions. While some are witch doctors, others sell ayurvedic products -- all to make ends meet. But now, their wares, they find to their utter and absolute dismay, have no takers.

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"We are drinking salt with tea and water, not even sugar we have. With so many little kids, we are in the throes of despair. If we have food one day, we will go hungry the next. For a few days, we lived on charity of the villagers, but now, we don't even have that. There are 30-40 of us here", says one of the homeless women, with a hint of exasperation in her voice.

In the midst of the ongoing crisis brought on by the coronavirus, the homeless families have erected makeshift arrangements for housing themselves, but their main concern is food. At a time when an increasing emphasis is being placed on nutrition as a measure to ward off the COVID-19, their poor and malnourished kids could potentially be staring at death due to starvation.

As the coronavirus cases in India climb, imposing a lockdown on 1.3 billion people was always going to be challenging. So far, the country has reported 72 deaths and most continue to stay indoors fearing the outbreak. However, there are many who still have no option but to brave the roads and crowds in an ongoing struggle for survival. As the corona continues to wipe out thousands across the globe, millions of destitute in India -- migrant workers, labourers, petty businessmen -- look at the Government with a single question in mind: achche din kab? (good days when?).

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