Published 20:31 IST, May 27th 2020
Mamata Banerjee slams Railway Ministry over Shramik trains; seeks PM Modi's intervention
Mamata Banerjee accused the Railway Ministry of sending the special trains for migrants without any prior notice and disrupting the state's methods
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused the Railway Ministry of sending special trains for migrants without any prior notice and disrupting the state's methods to contain the coronavirus. She further accused the railways of 'evacuating Maharashtra and spreading corona to Bengal' and playing politics with both states and sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi's intervention.
"I don't know why Railway Ministry has done this. How will I screen 2 lakh migrants? Will the Centre help?" Mamata Banerjee said. "Politics has overtaken everything. Am I to fight the cyclone and corona or politics? It is all too much," added the Chief Minister.
"We had given a list and a schedule for migrant trains but were suddenly told yesterday that 36 trains are now leaving for Bengal. Maharashtra said even they had no idea about it. They have started politics," she said. Furthermore, she accused the railways of not practising social distancing in the trains, even though the states are paying the bill.
"Why is there no social distancing in trains. We are paying for tickets. But why so many passengers in the coaches? You are evacuating Maharashtra and spreading corona to Bengal," she said.
Raising the same issue, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday, May 26 also said his government was not informed about the train coming from Mumbai to the state and that the move undermines measures taken by his government to ensure proper monitoring and control spread of COVID-19.
Mamata Banerjee seeks PM Modi’s intervention
Mamata Banerjee sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intervention on Wednesday in the alleged “whimsical” functioning of the railways in sending Shramik Special trains to West Bengal daily and urged the BJP-led central government not to pursue politics when the state is battling the dual crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic and the trail of destruction left behind by Cyclone Amphan.
The state’s infrastructure is “stretched to its limit” following the devastation caused by Cyclone Amphan, she said, adding that West Bengal can receive very few trains carrying migrant workers on a daily basis as of now.
(with inputs from agencies)
Updated 20:31 IST, May 27th 2020