The Human Impact of Covid-19 on India

Migrant workers rest near their cycles on NH24 in the Ghaziabad district of Uttar Pradesh, on the outskirts of Delhi, on Sunday May 17, 2020

India currently has the third-highest number of infections in the world. Around half a million migrant workers left Indian cities when the lockdown was first announced towards the end of March. The announcement came unexpectedly and went into effect immediately. These people would not be able to continue to live in cities without a source of income. Faced with the threat of hunger, men, women and children began the long journey back to their villages. As public transport was suspended, they had to travel back either on foot or on bicycles. In May, I travelled to the outskirts of Delhi during lockdown to follow the migrants’ journey. 

A migrant worker drinks water while taking a break from walking home in the sweltering heat on Sunday, May 17, 2020

Men, women and children take a break from walking home to their villages. The coronavirus pandemic has left many of India's poor without jobs, food, or a way to get home (Sunday, May 17, 2020)