Coronavirus: P Chidambaram said no money from PM-CARES will go into migrant workers' hands
Congress leader and former finance minister P Chidambaram on Thursday said the Rs 1,000 crore allocated by PM-CARES Fund for migrant workers affected by the coronavirus lockdown will not reach them.
"PM-CARES has allocated Rs 1000 crore for migrant workers. Please don't make the common mistake. The money will not be given to the migrant workers but to the State governments to meet the expenses of travel, accommodation, medicine and food for the migrant workers. But nothing will go to the hands of the migrant workers," tweeted Mr Chidambaram.
He raised questions as to how will a migrant survive if he does not have any sources of income.
"Let's take a migrant worker who has crossed all hurdles and returned to his village. There are no jobs in the village. He has no work and no income. How will he survive and support his family?" he asked.
The PM-CARES or Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund Trust on Wednesday allocated Rs 3,100 crore for the fight against COVID-19, of which Rs 2,000 crore will be used to buy ventilators, Rs 1,000 crore to help migrant labourers and Rs 100 crore for coronavirus vaccine development.