Humanitarian Crisis Continues
It feels like only yesterday that I wrote a note highlighting the plight of the migrant workers in India, forced to flee in their MILLIONS from the larger capital cities to their homes in rural India. I had so many letters of support and acknowledgement from people either of empathy and compassion, but mostly surprised that they had heard little about it in mainstream media.
Being able to share and show support to these people suffering was so impactful on me, I felt the need to send another update about their struggles.
Whilst in the developing world, countries have been so severely hit for the past few months and suffering in a truly horrendous state, glimpses of hope are emerging and people are able to return to some sense of normalcy.
In India, and other developing nations sadly, that is still not the case.
More media have begun following and highlighting the plight of the migrant workers in India, but with such suffering and difficulties it seems every country in the world right now, it is hard to truly understand and recognise the issue. It remains, sadly, a humanitarian crisis of epic proportions. The newly estimated figures of migrant workers place the number between a staggering 40 million to 150 million. MILLION.
As these workers are forced to often walk home for days or weeks from the larger cities, to their rural village homes, many are not only struggling but dying along the way.
Some of the worst recorded tragedies to date have been;
- At least 23 migrant workers killed on May 16 when a truck carrying them home to their village crashed in northern India
- 16 migrant workers died on May 8 after being struck by a train, after falling asleep on the tracks while walking back to their village in India's western state of Maharashtra.
I wish I could write something prophetic about what will happen, or how this might change the fast of fashion or even human rights and employment contracts in India and other developing nations. But sadly, I just don't know.
All I can do for now is share this story with you, bring awareness, and do my best to help and support these kinds of workers through the work that I do and employment that I can offer my small team.
Leave a comment