Work in several sectors come to standstill as migrant labourers leave Kerala en masse

KOTTAYAM: Migrant workers are going back home from Kerala en masse and the construction sector came to a standstill. Not only construction works, but their absence is there even in plantations, farms and chicken shops. Workers were reluctant to work in open areas due to high temperatures. The election came in the meantime. As there were no people to work in the construction sector, the construction of houses has been stopped halfway. Jharkhand natives usually work at farms. The natives of Uttarakhand and Jharkhand live with their families in the hilly areas and do work. Kottayam usually turns into a street filled with migrant workers on Sundays, but this hasn't been the case lately. The states of Assam, Odisha, Bengal and Bihar have the largest number of workers in the district. Many will return after a month.

Fear of losing citizenship

Most of the workers are going to vote this time due to ongoing protests related to the Citizenship Act. They are under pressure from political parties and are worried about losing their citizenship. There is widespread propaganda that if they don't vote, they will lose their citizenship.

Shortage of workers
Payipad in Kottayam is the place where migrant workers can be seen the most. Most of the workers work in the construction sector and the hotel sector. They are responsible for supply and cooking in hotels. 60-70% of the workers will go home by the middle of this month. Employers are worried about how to solve the labour shortage as they cannot get Malayalees even if they pay more.