Odisha government on Monday initiated measures to roll out the second phase of its work plan curtailing distress migration and ensuring safety of migrating Odia. Eleven districts – Bolangir, Bargarh, Kalahandi, Nuapada, Saharanpur, Ganjam, Gajapati, Rayagada, Koraput, Nawarangpur and Khurda have been identified as migration prone districts.

A total number of 1309 GPs in these districts have been brought under orbit of the work plan. Two toll free telephone numbers have been installed in Labour Directorate to provide guidance and assistance to the migrant workmen in the matters of registration, distress mitigation and rescue.

The toll free number of migrant labor working inside Odisha is 155368. The toll free number for Odia migrant workers working outside Odisha is 18003456703. At least 206 seasonal hostels for children of migrating families have been set up in different migration prone panchayats.

Around 9000 students could be retained in these seasonal schools during the current year continuing their education. They otherwise would have turned migrant labors along with their parents.

Tripartite meetings have been held among brick kiln association of Telengana, State officials of Telengana and Odisha for resolution of the issues relating to illegal migration and distress of labor.

MOUs have also been signed with Odia Associations in Karnataka, Tamilnadu , Andhra Pradesh and Madras for proactive collaboration for safety and welfare of the migrant workmen to these states, informed officials of the labour department.

A two-day stakeholder’s consultative workshop on ‘Safety and Welfare of Inter- State Migrant Workmen in Odisha’ was held on Monday where Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi asked all the stake holders to work out an integrated and intensive work plan for minimizing the distress migration in 30 migration prone GPs of Bolangir and Nuapada districts.

He directed the department to make the interventions more proactive for prevention of distress migration through integrated work plan and creation of alternative livelihood options in the migration prone districts.

Chief Secretary directed to develop the 2nd phase of the work plan on the basis of the learning, experiences and feedback received during the first phase of action from 2014-15-to 2017-18. Padhi added, “the Liaison Officers at destination states have a very crucial role to play in rescue of the workers in distress”.

They should be trained and oriented accordingly. Principal Secretary Labour and ESI Mrs Anu Garg said that the work plan would focus on the questions like how to prevent distress migration of labor and what are the ways and means to provide them alternative livelihood options.

Regulation of voluntary migration, education and care of the children of migrating families, rescue models, integration of help desks with various enforcement agencies and departments, application of technology for instant transmission of messages and quicker action would be other major focus areas, she informed.

Labour Commissioner Sachin Yadav spoke of the toll free numbers at the panchayat level and several other measures that have been put in place. Ms Nayantara Sabavala, Director Programme Design Tata Trust and Mr Jitendra Patnaik Regional director Tata Trust addressed the inaugural session. Odisha government has entered into an MOU with Tata Trust of India for joint action for promoting safety and welfare of inter-state migrant workmen.