Thousands continue to flee Indian cities
18 August BBC
The exodus of people from India's north-eastern states living in the
southern city of Bangalore continues with more migrant workers
fleeing.There are reports of people from the region fleeing the the
cities of Chennai (Madras) and Pune as well.
PM Manmohan Singh has appealed for calm and said peace "must be
maintained at any cost".Officials have blamed the exodus on "rumour
mongering" linked to clashes in the north-eastern Assam state.
More than 300,000 people fled after fighting between indigenous Bodo
tribes and Muslim settlers in Assam.Fresh violence between the two sides
was reported on Thursday when a mob set fire to a bus and a road bridge,
reports say.
At least nine people were reported to be injured in clashes.
The main railway station in Bangalore was flooded with migrant
workers from north-eastern states for a second successive day on
Thursday to catch three special trains to the north-east.
A senior Bangalore official told the BBC that nearly 15,000 people
from the region had left the city since Wednesday, when the rumours
broke out.
There are 250,000 people from the north-east living and working in
Bangalore, which is often referred to as the Silicon Valley of
India.Many of them are students, security guards and workers in the
hospitality sector.
A minister in the local government S Suresh Kumar told the Press
Trust of India that the exodus was "not due to a threat factor, but due
to the anxiety [of the people leaving] to be with their parents when
Assam has been gripped by violence".
The rumours of attacks have spread to neighbouring Chennai in Tamil
Nadu state, and Pune in Maharashtra to the north-west, reports
say.Workers and students from the north-east - mostly from Assam -
living in Chennai arrived at the railway station to board to special
trains to take them home, one report said.
"Nothing has happened till now, but we are very sure something really
bad is going to happen. Our Bangalore friends have said we have to
leave," Bishnu, a migrant worker from Assam, told
The Hindu newspaper.Reports of a similar exodus are being reported
from western Pune city, where many north-east people working in the city
are reported to have fled.
The rumours of attacks have been spread through text messages and the
social media. There have been a few reports of people being threatened
to leave.
"We must work together to ensure that all people from other states do
not feel threatened by rumour mongering and text messages," PM Manmohan
Singh said.
Many young people from the restive north-east region have migrated to
the cities of Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore in search of better jobs and
education. |