Chikiti: Stuck for days in Chennai without basic necessities amid the ongoing lockdown, as many as 38 migrant labourers from Chikiti block of Ganjam district took on a six-day long voyage on sea aboard a fishing dinghy to come back to the state.
They managed to reach Patisonapur beach in Ganjam district Saturday night after covering over 1000 kilometres on sea, the district administration said.
All of these 38 migrant workers are fishermen who were working with a fishing merchant in Chennai. They were struggling for survival after the fishing operation came to a halt post lockdown. Sealed road borders meant that they were not able to return through roadways.
With no job left, the group of 38 fishermen decided to buy a fishing boat for Rs 2 lakh and started a sea voyage April 20 towards Odisha after packing some rice and other eatables.
The long journey in a cramped boat, however, took its toll on the fishermen. They were dehydrated and famished at the time of their arrival in state.
The fishermen are from Patisunpur, Eksing, Gopalpur, Dunkur, Kabastakudi and Pukalapalam villages located near Andhra Pradesh border area.
Chikiti Tehsildar Haraprasad Bhoi, BDO Falguni Majhi and Golanthara Marine Police along other government officials of Ganjam district rescued the migrant workers from the beach. They were taken to a nearby quarantine facility after the initial medical screening.
Ganjam district collector Vijay Amrit Kulange said the administration had prior information about their journey.
“They were under stress owing to the rising number of coronavirus cases and had run out of food. Now that they have reached Odisha coast, we will put them in quarantine for next 14 days as a precautionary measure,” Kulange said.
Notably, the fishermen used the GPS in their mobile phones to keep track of the route and also watched the stars. The fishermen also had an Indian tricolour flying from the mast of their boat to avoid any hassle by marine patrolling agencies.
PNN