Many Nagas in Bengaluru lose jobs; alternative shelters needed

Our Correspondent
Kohima, April 6 (EMN): The Naga Task Force Bengaluru (NTFB) for Covid-19 is reaching out to thousands of Nagas residing in Bengaluru with essential commodities, as the nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of novel coronavirus (Covid-19) has caused lot of hardships to the public, especially those stranded in various parts of the country.

Since April 2, the NTFB has been making efforts to reach out to stranded people in need and others from the state of Nagaland with essential items like rice, dal and oil. The nationwide lockdown is said to have left many jobless.

The NTFB have procured a sum of INR 2 lakh from the government of Nagaland as financial aid to provide some assistance to those stranded in the capital city of Karnataka. NTFB informed Eastern Mirror on Monday that about 623 people have been given essential commodities and other facilities from April 2 till the filing of this report (April 6).

On April 1, three members each from Naga Students’ Union Bangalore (NSUB) and Eastern Naga Students’ Union Bangalore (ENSUB) jointly formed Naga Task Force Bengaluru (NTFB) to cater to the needs of Nagas staying in and around the IT capital of India.

“Since we have passes with the help of Srinath Mahadev (IPS), the DCP and nodal officer for Northeast in Bangalore, we could travel anywhere and every part of Bangalore to reach (out to) our people,” Zakietuo Noudi, member of NTFB and vice president of NSUB, told this newspaper over the phone.

The six NTFB members have been helping Nagas — students, working people and others — from 8 am to 10 pm daily, and it will continue till the lockdown is over. Noudi informed that about 80% of people who sought help from them were from the hotel and hospitability industry, and those working in private security sector.

“Most of the people are left without job because of this lockdown,” he said. He cited instances of Nagas working in restaurants and hotels staying in groups of 10-15 together in different staff rooms, while maintaining that NTFB have “lots of people to look after”.

For those staying in rural areas and outskirts of Bengaluru, NTFB reaches out to them by transferring money into their accounts so that they could buy essential items. However, before delivering these facilities, proper verification of the identity of each individual is done as NTFB receives many random calls for help.

“People are thinking that we are providing this facility to every Naga but this is mainly for those people who don’t have any financial source,” they said.

NTFB informed that the members have taken to Twitter to inform CMO and chief secretary office by keeping a track of all the data of the daily expenses being made. “We are mentioning every single rupee that is going out,” Noudi said.

Despite people getting their food and rations, NTFB has expressed serious concerns over the unavailability of alternative places for Nagas and sought the state government to provide alternative shelters to the stranded Nagas in Bengaluru.

It was reported that some house owners have asked Nagas, who could not pay their rent after being left jobless due to the lockdown, to vacate the house. The NTFB also said that people are afraid of sharing accommodation with others for fear of Covid-19 infection though Nagas living in the city are hospitable.

Owing to this, the task force has requested the government of Nagaland to look into the matter with utmost seriousness and provide an alternative shelter to those facing severe difficulties and inconveniences due to the ongoing situation.

There are more than 20,000 Nagas, including those from Manipur state, living in Bengaluru, according to NTFB.