Panic has subsided migrant workers: Bihar official

CHENNAI: The four-member delegation of Bihar bureaucrats who assessed the safety of Bihar workers in the state thanked the Tamil Nadu government for the efforts taken by it and said that the panic triggered by fake videos has subsided among the workers.

D Balamurugan, rural development secretary of Bihar, who spoke to media persons jointly with Tamil Nadu public secretary D Jagannathan at the state secretariat here, said that the continuous efforts of Tamil Nadu and Bihar governments have helped the Bihar workers living here understand that the videos were fake and the panic caused by the videos has subsided.

"Videos from other places, a murder in Jodhpur, an incident in Hyderabad and another incident from Coimbatore in which no Bihar worker was involved, were circulated and projected as incidents involving Bihar workers. They (workers) have now learnt that the videos are fake. They panicked after seeing the videos earlier. Continuous efforts taken by Tamil Nadu and Bihar governments have helped them understand that the videos are fake and the panic among them has started subsiding," said Balamurugan who along with his three colleagues wound up the visit with a final meeting with state chief secretary V Iraianbu at Fort St George Tuesday morning.

Detailing their interaction with workers, state police cum district administration officials, industry associations and Bihar associations besides workers, the Bihar rural development secretary said that they had even checked the kind of messages received by the workers on their mobile phones with the workers' permission.

"We have conveyed our sincere thanks to the Tamil Nadu chief secretary on behalf of the team members and government of Bihar. The chief secretary explained how the state government reacted after the fake news spread. We learnt it ourselves even before the CS explained."