The death and disappearance of migrant workers Premium

Tragic incident highlights risks faced by migrant workers in Hyderabad, shedding light on their struggles and lack of support.

On May 15, Udal Yadav, a 37-year-old migrant worker, sat outside the mortuary of the government-run Gandhi Hospital in Secunderabad. He was waiting for the post-mortem results of his relatives, who were victims of a construction-site wall collapse at Bachupally in Hyderabad, after the recent rains.

Seven people, including a four-year-old child, died on May 8, after the wall collapsed on the migrant workers’ tenements. All of them hailed from Odisha, Chhattisgarh, and West Bengal. It has put the spotlight on the risks that migrant workers are forced to take, when they leave their homes and come to work, unprotected by State or employer, in chaotic urban centres.

“It has been some days since the accident, yet the building owner where we were employed, has not reached out with any assistance. I earn Rs. 800 daily, but today, I could not work as I have been here at the hospital. I am not sure how I will make up for this loss,” Yadav says.

By 9 p.m., the doctors handed over the bodies to the police, who in turn gave them to the friends and families of the deceased. Transporting the bodies to their hometowns would take Rs. 50,000.

One worker remarked, “If I labour on a site for six months, this is all I will be able to save.” The families and fellow workers of the victims were unable to proceed and transport a single body due to the exorbitant transportation expenses.

While the workers engaged in dialogue with the police, a man approached them and handed over a letter written by the building owner. Unable to understand Telugu, the workers sought assistance from the police to translate its contents.

According to the letter, on behalf of the Twin Cities’ Contractors’ Association, the building owner offered his condolences and proposed a compensation of Rs. 11.5 lakh per victim.