Gurugram : At 7am everyday, 45-year-old Chandni walks three kilometres from her house in Nathupur to Labour Chowk , and sits on a pavement hoping to get some work at a construction site. For the past nine days, she has had to return empty-handed. “I hope to get lucky today,” she said.

Chandni, a native of Murshidabad district in West Bengal, had been working as a domestic help in DLF-Phase 3 area for several years till the Covid-19-induced lockdown restricted the entry of domestic helpers.

“I could not go to West Bengal as I had to look after my five children. I managed to get by for a couple of months. Since last week, I have been coming here to look for bricklaying work,” she said.

THE SITUATION
Like Chandni, many factory workers, bus drivers, guards, auto-rickshaw drivers, tent house workers, among scores of others, who lost their jobs, have been forced to take up daily wage work. With limited job options, they stand on the road stretching from Sikanderpur Metro Station to Bristol Chowk among hundreds of others, hoping to find work at a construction site or a warehouse, which would pay ?500-800 for eight hours’ work.

Anna Naali, a resident of Chakkarpur, was a school bus driver before he was laid off. “The schools are now closed and classes are online. I was earning ?16,000 a month as a bus driver. I have been coming to Labour Chowk for work for the past two months. Every alternate day, I manage to find some construction work, which pays 500-600. I would like to go back to driving once things normalise,” he said.
According to a United Nations estimate, by the end of the year, half a billion people globally may be pushed into destitution, largely, because of the pandemic. The most vulnerable among them are the poor with no or limited access to unemployment assistance or healthcare. Though the industries and construction services have resumed operations in the city, lack of demand, supply chain problems and a host of external factors mean that the economic activity is yet to take off.

RETURN OF THE MIGRANTS
As per the local trade unions and government department estimates, around 400,000 to 500,000 people, particularly construction workers and daily wagers, had migrated to their home states due to the lockdown. Several, who had gone to their respective native states and returned to the city recently, stare at an uncertain future.

Bihar resident Rahul is one of those. “I worked with a tent house in Wazirabad and was let go after the business suffered,” he said. “I went back to my village in Kisanganj in April. I returned in May and have been looking for a job since then. This labour work is not viable in the long run, but I have limited options.”

With most private companies and IT firms still closed, Metro not plying and not many people visiting malls, auto-drivers have been forced to either sell fruits and vegetables or work as daily wagers to earn their living.

According to an estimate by Haryana Auto Chalak Sangh, a state-wide body, around 1,000 auto owners have either converted their vehicles into makeshift vending carts or have hired push carts to do this work and they can spotted on major arterial roads in the city.
Faheem, who was selling pineapples near Tau Devi Lal park in Sector 22 says that most of them stay in rented rooms and have to pay ?2,000 as rent per person and the cost of food also touches ?3000 a month. “There are hardly any passengers on the road. Earlier, we used to earn ?500 to ?600 daily, but that is not possible now,” he says.

As per the Haryana Auto Chalak Sangh, over 70% of the autos in the city have been financed by private players. “The owners have to pay interest and this is a major burden as the state government has not announced any relief for our members,” said Yogesh Sharma, state general secretary of the association.

WHAT IS THE GOVERNMENT DOING?
Last week, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had announced that the state cabinet had passed a draft of an ordinance to address unemployment of local population on priority basis.

The ordinance aims at reserving 75% of new jobs with salaries less than ?50, 000 a month in private firms, societies, trusts, limited liability partnership firms and partnership firms for local youths.

Amit Khatri, deputy commissioner, Gurugram, said, “A number of steps have been taken to help the workers. These include government schemes, such as MGNREGA and other measures. We are aware about the issues being faced by migrant workers. The state government is providing assistance in both cash and kind.” 

Dr Manipadma Datta, vice-chancellor, TERI School of Advanced Studies, and the head of the department of business sustainability, said that although some labourers have returned in desperation, they are facing difficulties as the economy remains under stress. “Workers from nearby areas, such as western UP, have arrived again but the distress is not going to ease as cities and economies remain under lockdown. The government policies have not been able to revive either the primary or the tertiary sectors,” he said.