Ernakulam Rural police in Kerala stare at arduous task of getting credentials of migrant workers cleared from their home districts

Ernakulam Rural Police in Kerala face huge task of obtaining police clearance certificates of 1.2 lakh migrant workers from other States. Registration of migrants started after murder of 5-yr-old girl in July 2023. Police collect data for verification & clearance, but process may take months. Registration not mandatory, but may lead to xenophobic sentiments & trampling of rights. Police resources limited, verification may be futile & unsustainable.

The Ernakulam Rural police in Kerala are staring at the humongous, if not impossible, task of obtaining police clearance certificates of migrant workers within their limits from the police authorities of the respective districts in other States where the workers hail from.

The police had kickstarted the registration of migrant workers shortly after the gruesome murder of a five-year-old migrant girl allegedly by a migrant worker at Aluva in July, 2023. The trial in the case is under way.

So far, the police claim to have registered around 1.2 lakh migrant workers. Migrant workers from Assam topped the list followed by West Bengal, Odisha, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Tamil Nadu.

“The data collected at the individual police stations are being collated on the Janamaithri Suraksha Portal at the district police headquarters. After categorising the data State-wise, we are now about to create a district-wise categorisation for sending their details to the district police chiefs concerned for getting the credentials of migrants verified and cleared. It is a time-consuming process and may take months,” said Vivek Kumar, District Police Chief (Ernakulam Rural).

For an already stretched police force, the registration of migrant workers has become a huge drain on their limited resources. Teams from police stations are assigned a specific number of wards on selected days for registration of migrant workers for which they may or may not receive the cooperation of the local body members. Besides, patrolling teams collect details of migrants found in suspicious circumstances.

Asked whether the registration amounted to profiling and stereotyping of the migrant community, which is already looked up on with suspicion by local residents, Mr. Kumar said every act will have its pros and cons and that it depends on how one interprets it. It helps in easy identification of the migrants who, for instance, die in accidents here or are involved in suspicious activities, he added.

“In any case, we have not made their rights to movement and livelihood here incumbent on registration. It is like collecting the details of senior citizens in an area for extending better care to them,” said Mr. Kumar.