MillenniumPost
Editorial

Opportunity in adversity

Official Railways data regarding the Shramik Special trains highlight two trends of considerable importance. Firstly, out of nearly 3,800 such trains, more than 75 per cent headed to Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. In numbers, UP received 20,47,000 of migrant workers followed by Bihar receiving around 17,34,000 till Friday morning. Secondly, while UP and Bihar were top destinations, Gujarat and Maharashtra were the top source states for outgoing migrant workers. These two trends are crucial from the perspective of industries in the source states and employment in the destination states. The en masse exodus of migrants from Gujarat and Maharasthra directly creates a vacuum of non-technical and unskilled labour. For instance, Surat alone accounts for the departure of at least 60 per cent of the workforce since the special trains were flagged off. The Surat textile industry has now urged the state government to establish a committee to convince labourers to refrain from leaving the state. Lack of unskilled or semi-skilled labour is bound to force industries into underproduction which, in turn, will hamper their capacity to cover the deficit that has been created due to economic disruptions of more than two months. It has been observed that a majority of MSMEs are dependent on migrant workers. Reverse migration of workers, therefore, pushes MSMEs towards a helpless crisis. MSMEs account for more than 80 per cent of total employment in Maharasthra and around three million such MSMEs make the backbone of its economy. A deficiency of migrants leaves these MSMEs as well as industries in a tough spot. Taking prime minister's cue of 'self-reliance' these MSMEs and industries should then proceed to recruit from the pool of local workers to fill the gap. Otherwise, production is bound to remain below the threshold, forcing many towards closure. But that equation of filling the gap with locals rather than the migrant pool is easier said than done. It is also about the work available and the skill set one possesses besides the size of the workforce to recruit from. If these migrant workers make up a huge workforce of these industries and MSMEs, it is largely due to their underskilled profile and large population back in their home states. An almost replaceable workforce may not be readily available in the local pool.

While states losing workers to reverse migration stare at workforce vacuum, the states receiving them stare at even higher unemployment rates. For UP and Bihar, receiving more than 20 and 17 lakh migrants respectively can be an alarming situation both in terms of the infection spread as well as unemployed demographic. Both UP and Bihar have initiated skill profiling of these migrants with the former going an extra mile to establish a migrant commission for expedited redressal of the humanitarian challenge. The main employment source amid others that UP government aspires to identify is MGNREGS. With Centre's additional outlay of 40,000 crores, MGNREGS appears to be a viable enough temporary solution. But it is bound by its restrictions of a limited number of working days and basic pay. Both states must realise the opportunity that these migrant hands bring to the state in terms of human resource. Development in these two states can pick pace with the massive pool of workers they possess but it is crucial that both states put this pool into non-farm sectors. Skill profiling shall be utilised to appropriately absorb these workers in local industries and the latter's capacity should be enhanced for the same purpose. With the bold words of UP CM asserting how his government will ensure their workers' social security, the time appears ripe to utilise the opportunity to maximise the state's potential in terms of development. For long, these two states have seen a large number of locals depart for other states in search of employment. They now have an opportunity to utilise these hands to their own development through a conducive environment based on short-term and long-term goals.

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