AAP's Sanjay Singh to send 33 migrants home by flights

Aam Aadmi Party leader Sanjay Singh has decided to use the 34 air tickets he is entitled to as an MP to help stranded migrant workers reach Patna from Delhi by flight, party sources said.

He will accompany 33 migrant workers in a flight to Patna on Thursday evening, they said. An MP is entitled to 34 business class tickets in domestic flights annually.

The decision was praised by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who said it would be an inspiration for everyone.

"Everyone will be inspired by this unique initiative of Sanjay ji. Those whom God has given means, it is their responsibility to put their resources in the service of others. Sanjay ji deserves to be congratulated," Kejriwal said in a tweet.

Responding to the compliment, Singh said these were the ideals with which he entered politics.

"Thank you Arvind Kejriwal ji. These are the ideals with which we entered politics with you and I will try to follow them throughout my life," he said in a tweet.

The coronavirus-triggered lockdown has had a devastating impact on the economy as well as on the livelihoods of lakhs of migrant workers.

The plight of migrant workers, walking hundreds, sometimes thousands of kilometres, cycling or clambering onto buses and trains, to go from urban centres to their villages has been the focus of concern for almost two months.

The Centre has said around four crore migrant labourers are engaged in various jobs across the country. And so far, 75 lakh of them have returned home in trains and buses since the nationwide lockdown was imposed.