Forget free tickets, migrants allegedly charged more for special trains
What's the story
Even after the Centre clarified that migrant workers will not be charged for special trains facilitating inter-state transport, workers in Uttar Pradesh had a different story to tell.
The workers—who arrived from Surat, Gujarat—told News18 that they were charged Rs. 800 for transport.
The development comes a day after workers in Surat alleged that they were overcharged for special trains and thrashed.
Details
Workers paid up to Rs. 800 for Rs. 630 tickets
According to News18, the workers reached the Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya railway station in UP from Surat on Friday.
Speaking to the publication, the workers alleged that they were charged up to Rs. 800 for the transport, against tickets carrying a price of Rs. 630.
The workers said they did not have a choice but to shell out the train fare.
Quote
'Those who charged us were middlemen, not railway officials'
A migrant, Neeraj Kumar, told News18, "When a few of us filled the forms, our papers were rejected. At least 20 of us in that group were asked to pay Rs. 800."
Kumar said, "We were told that we need to pay this amount, or else we can move out of the queue," adding that those charging them were not railway officials, but middlemen.
Other claims
'They took our names, money, Aadhaar cards'
Kumar also alleged that the middlemen took their Aadhaar cards and money and then processed their tickets.
Another migrant, Ram Lot Saroj, was made to pay a hiked price of Rs. 750 and was told that it was a "tatkal" ticket. He said, "We were a group of 27 people, our names and Aadhaar cards along with money were taken."
Information
'Middlemen gave us tickets in buses before reaching train station'
Another migrant, Subhash, told News18 they had paid Rs. 750 in advance and were handed tickets by "middlemen" in buses taking them to the train station. Sonika paid Rs. 800 and said that the food they were served was just plain rice.
Migrant workers crisis
After 40 days of lockdown, trains allowed to ferry migrants
Amid the lockdown, several migrant workers, who move to bigger cities for employment, were rendered jobless.
The workers thus wished to return to their native states. With the travel shutdown, lakhs of workers decided to walk hundreds of kilometers.
After 40 days, the Centre allowed special trains to ferry them home and said that the workers would not have to pay.
Information
Centre said it will pay 85% of ticket fare
The Centre said on Monday that 85% of the ticket fare was to be borne by the Railways Ministry and the remaining 15% by the state governments. However, according to reports, migrant workers continue to pay for tickets or walk home to their native states.
Recent developments
UP government not sharing list of migrants: Congress party
Separately, the Congress party said that it would pay for the workers' ticket fare.
On Thursday, the party's UP unit alleged that the state government hasn't provided them with the list of migrant workers that arrived in the state, so it could pay their rail fare.
Meanwhile, on Friday a video of a worker went viral as he bled on a roadside in Surat.
Information
Workers paid Rs. 1 lakh; thrashed upon asking for tickets
The migrant claimed he was thrashed by one Rajesh Verma who charged his group Rs. 1.16 lakh for transport. When the migrants went to collect the tickets, they were allegedly thrashed. Verma is reportedly linked to the BJP, however, the party has denied any connection.
Twitter Post
You can view the video here
Shocking video from Surat, Gujarat.
— Saral Patel (@SaralPatel) May 8, 2020
BJP worker Rajesh Verma asked 100 migrant workers from Jharkhand to pay for their train tickets in advance. They were charged 3x the original price.
When a migrant worker went to his house to protest, he was beaten hit with wooden plank. pic.twitter.com/fXj5o5ojnu