With migrant labourers leaving the state in huge numbers, work on the government’s flagship 2-BHK housing project have been reduced to a snail’s pace. A lack of payments to contractors has also been cited as a reason behind the slowdown in the project.
As per the government, around 8.5 lakh labourers — mostly from Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Odisha — were employed in the construction sector. They were mostly employed in areas in and around the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) limits. Many decided to return despite the government’s announcement of free ration and a grant of Rs 500 to each labourer.
Officials say that, in many areas, only 20% of the workforce is left. Workers who have stayed behind have hiked their labour charges. Till now, they were paid Rs 22 per sqft but many are now demanding up to Rs 45 for the same amount of work. “This is an additional burden for us. But under the present situation, there is no other option,” a contractor said. Many workers are reluctant to come back to work.
“We used to work in Khammam but now there are many coronavirus cases in that district. We have come back to Bihar. Though the contractors are calling us, we have not decided over it,” said Ram Yadav, a construction worker. There are around 2.8 lakh 2-BHK houses under construction, most of them located under Greater Hyderabad limits.