The Goa police are playing goodSamaritans by providing food and essentials to over 200 migrant labourers housed at government relief camps in North Goa amid the nationwide COVID-19 lockdown.The authorities stopped several migrant labourers from crossing the state's borders, and have taken the onus of providing them essentials to survive the lockdown period.The Goa police's Porvorim sub-division, which mans the North Goa's coastal belt, formed a supply chain to provide meals and other essentials to migrant labourers at Agarwado, Gauravado and Porbawado in Calangute village, Baga and Peddem near Mapusa."Superintendent of Police Utkrisht Prasoon is leading the drive, under which timely meals are served to migrant labourers, who were stopped from walking hundreds of kilometres to reach their villages," deputy superintendent of police (Porvorim) Edwin Colaco told PTI.The police had intercepted these migrant labourers, as the state government had sealed the borders, prohibiting any movement, except of those providing essential services."Many labourers were travelling on foot with their families and infants," he said.Issac Fernandes, a hotelier from Baga, volunteered to supply milk and food to the stranded labourers and has set up a community kitchen to help them, the senior official said.A local milk distributor has also come forward to supply free milk for infants and toddlers at these camps for an entire month, he said, adding that several locals were also making donations for this initiative.Inspectors in the division were directed to identify migrant labourers who are unable to access food or essentials due to loss of income during the lockdown, he added.
