The official notices were clear: the workers themselves would have to pay for the tickets home, plus a surcharge. As we know, as soon as Congress president Sonia Gandhi offered to pay for all travel, all hell broke loose and the Centre took a days silence to then pretend that it had meant to pay all along, with some small amount to be borne by state governments.

To date, that lie has been proved over and over as travellers claimed that they have paid for their rail tickets. Karnataka meanwhile said it was banning labourers from leaving for their home states because the builders lobby needed labourers. It was only after public outrage that trains were permitted.

And do not ever forget that at the same time, hundreds and millions of rupees were spent to get the Indian Air Force to drop flowers on hospitals even as the long walks of desperation continued. So lets get back to Shaw. Even as the government robbed Peter, there were huge appeals from Paul like the builders lobby in Karnataka that government handouts be given to them. As a favour, the governments of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh decided to do away with most labour laws. Peter once more was to be sacrificed for Paul.

In essence, while some rubbed their hands with glee, the rights done away with included toilet facilities, ventilation, somewhere to sit, protective gear, first aid, canteens, lighting, 8-hour shifts, weekly holidays and more. This in effect means that the worker is now a slave, at the mercy of his or her employer. You can rest assured that wages will also be similarly reduced. The Indian economy is at its lowest point ever now, between the Modi governments own severe mishandling and lack of policy and now thanks to SARS-Cov-2, as the virus has been renamed. And because of the lockdown, Indias most vulnerable are even more at risk.

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Why this Govt reminds you of George Bernard Shaw at every step - National Herald