The West Bengal government has swung into action after the reports of harassment and illegal detentions, allegedly faced by Bengali-speaking migrant workers across the country. The TMC has launched multiple initiatives at both the party and the government levels.
Under the party's "planned and coordinated" strategy, the government has launched a WhatsApp-only helpline, revived migrant welfare cells at the district level and strengthened local TMC task forces in high-migration areas to act as first responders and address grievances.
"The approach is two-pronged. On one hand, the government has launched helplines and activated its administrative machinery to contact officials in other states, while on the other, the party has established multi-layered coordination teams, ranging from the grassroots to the district levels. Our workers are constantly in touch with families of migrants, especially in high migration zones," PTI quoted senior TMC leader and state minister Manas Bhunia as saying.
This came in the wake of recent incidents in Odisha, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Delhi, Tamil Nadu and Chhattisgarh, where Bengali workers allegedly faced profiling, detention or even forced deportation.
West Bengal police launches helpline number
The West Bengal police on Friday introduced the WhatsApp helpline to report such issues. People facing the aforementioned issues are required to share their names, locations and nature of the problem.
"In many cases, families don't even know where to report or whom to approach. This helpline allows verified reporting, based on which we can contact the state authorities concerned," the news agency quoted a senior police officer as saying.
The police have also urged the people to share the helpline number across their social media platforms to ensure timely help for people in need.
Special focus on districts with high migration rate
A task force, comprising area leaders, elected panchayat members, and MLAs, has been formed to function in states having a high rate of migration. The party network has been ardently working in districts, including Malda, Murshidabad, Uttar Dinajpur, Dakshin Dinajpur, Cooch Behar, Alipurduar, Birbhum, Nadia, North and South 24 Parganas.
