Migrants send bikes through train, leave city by road

HYDERABAD: Fearing the spread of Covid-19 yet again, especially the Omicron variant and possible lockdown, migrants from north and north-eastern states, who have been working in the city, have started transporting their two-wheelers to their respective states. They have already booked slots with the South Central Railways to deliver their vehicles to their respective destinations. Hundreds of these migrant workers have already vacated their rented houses and already left for their native places with their families by road.

Since January 8, the parcel section of Secunderabad Railway Station has been piled up with packed vehicles ready to be transported to their destinations. Daily more than a hundred two-wheelers are being transported to seven states.

Some of the migrants, who did not take vaccination, do not possess certificates, and afraid of being held up by the railway authorities, they already left to their states by road. Some of them have not paid the vehicle finances to the bankers but took their vehicles with them.

While those who hold good jobs decided to stay in the city for a second time, but transported their vehicles to their native states through the railways and decided to wait for the government’s decision.

Most of these migrants belong to Kolkata, UP, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Mizoram and other parts of the country and have been running kiosks, working in hotels or doing jobs as security guards. “We have low income in our village. We came to Hyderabad expecting good savings. Leaving our families behind, we came to Hyderabad. Now, we decided to leave before it is too late,” Arjun Srivastav, who runs a kiosk in Mallappally,  said.

They reside in rented houses in the areas of Krishanagar, Musheerabad, Yousufguda, Gowrishankar Nagar, Nandinagar, Mallapally, Asifnagar, Zeharangar and Ellareddyguda. Most of them left during the first lockdown and then returned after the relaxation.

“I have been working as a chef in Hyderabad for the last 11 years. I am familiar with most of the people. Most of them informed me before leaving they transferred their savings to their relatives and will return only after the situation gets back to normal,” Abid Khan of Farasha Hotel said.

“Our parcel section has started transporting more than 100 vehicles from January 8. For the convenience of the people, we have also started accepting advance bookings following the Covid norms. We have received parcel orders to Dhanpur, Patna, Guwahati, West Bengal, Bhirakpur, Patna and other places. Some of them are transporting their vehicles to Andhra Pradesh may be due to Sankranti,” D. K. Shina, chief supervisor of parcel section, Secunderabad Railway Station, said.