‘Sons of the soil’ policy is deplorable and abhorrent detrimental
to the national fabric of a nation. When a nation adopts such a policy, when
that nation’s ire and anger are directed towards other countries we call it
Xenophobia. Xenophobia occasionally rears its ugly head forcing those who lead
a life earning their livelihood in a country causing no disturbance to anyone,
but are caught unawares by the violent attacks of indigenous elements they are
left with no other option except fleeing the country fearing for their life.
And when xenophobia assumes alarming proportions at least a few of them fall
preys to the apostles of this dastardly policy getting killed mercilessly.
‘Sons of the soil’ policy and xenophobia are in some way or
other related to each other.
I am forced to touch upon this subject when I came across an
important news item in today’s newspapers about people from the North-East who
had caught trains from faraway places like Guwahati, Assam or for that matter
any other State and earning their livelihood to look after their families who
are waiting for the monthly money-orders from their family heads and upon
getting the hard earned money utilize it for taking care of their children and
other domestic needs.
Those who come from faraway States are always sincere in
their works and the wages they get in return are often peanuts but they do not
form any unions or desist from joining any unions formed by the locals workers
for fear of losing their livelihoods and ending up jobless. Such people are forced
to return to their native States empty-handed.
One most unfortunate truth is that, they erect tents and
live in unhygienic conditions often contracting diseases like diahorrea, jaundice,
typhoid, cholera, TB etc. The authorities concerned are often beset with many problems
and most often them don’t get not enough time to provide suitable living
conditions for these hapless migrant labourers. They never approach the
authorities and unravel their grievances to the authorities knowing fully well
that they are unlikely to get favourable answers to their problems and
therefore they have learnt to live with what they have.
Still the so-called ‘Sons of the soil’ policy holders find
these poor people a pain in their neck or a thorn in their flesh and take up
cudgels against them and chase them away. In the process a few get murdered and
news spread like wild-fire through mobile SMSs, social-media or their other
friends or relatives resultantly they get panicky and to escape threat to their
existence rush to railway-stations and catch the trains to their native States
with whatever belongings. The employers who force them work like slaves for a pittance
keep away from guaranteeing them any security out of fear of the militant ‘sons
of the soil’ policy holders. Today’s newspapers carry reports of mass exodus of
people of North-East from States like Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and
Maharashtra heading to railway stations in droves to catch the trains to their
lands at the earliest.
The Prime Minister down Ministry of Home Affairs, other
Ministers and bureaucrats working under them though hold out promises to the
fleeing hapless ones with assuring security at any cost they are not confident
and are still panicky. The disinformation campaigns are so strong and
widespread through mobile phone SMSs and social media and by vested interests cause
widespread panic, even their near and dear ones send messages to them to return
apprehending calamities and even deaths,the labourers are constrained to leave
their jobs to get back to their homes.
If not all of us, at least old generation who lived in
Mumbai in the 60’s might be recalling the hardships many had to endure during
that time, the victims were mostly from South Indian States like Kerala and
Tamil Nadu at the hands of ‘Shiv Sena’ activists whose leader was the
well-known cartoonist turned politician Bal Thackeray under whose leadership
the Marathas turned violent and consequently many Keralites and Tamilians fled
Bombay to Kerala and Tamil Nadu leaving their belongings - among them many Malayalees
and Tamilians lost their lives, their shops burnt, vehicles set ablaze and
properties destroyed. Shiv Sena was formed in 1966, exclusively for ‘Marathi Manoos’
whose motto was ‘sons of the soil’ policy. Later when the turbulent situation returned
to normality the South Indians went back to Bombay and resumed jobs and opened
shops, residences built and an atmosphere of harmony prevailed. They had to
start from the scratch.
Hope, the govts, Central and States, will rise to the
occasion and do whatever is needed to bring back those who fled and instill courage,
peace and sense of security in them, create an atmosphere of harmony.
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