Railway officials argue that trains are the safest way to bring migrant workers home.

“India has done an extraordinary job in spreading the disease compared to most of the world’s materially developed countries,” Railway Ministry spokesman DJ Narain said.

The government organized 4,621 labor specials More than 6 million people. As they fled from the cities of India that were becoming hot spots, many of the returnees dragged the virus with them, and yet they continued to come. More than half a lakh workers board trains in the industrial hub of Surat.

“It felt like Doomsday,” said ticket collector Ram Singason. “When you see how many people are crowded outside, it looks like the end of the world is coming.”

A lockdown unlocks an exit

Modi hit the lockdown switch on March 24 at 8 pm. At a television address, He was ordered to stay within the entire country for three weeks, starting within four hours.

The decision was pure Modi: quick, dramatic and firm, as if he had been wiped out quickly. 90% of India’s currency bills in 2016, A blue-collar move that he said was essential to the fight against corruption but proved to be financially destructive.

Prafulla and Rabindra Behera had dinner of rice, peas and potatoes. They lived in bare rooms in the industrial area of ​​Surat, sleeping half to a dozen other workers floor-to-wall. Within minutes of Modi’s address, they started getting calls.

“Everyone was thinking the same thing: it will end soon and somehow the days will pass,” Ravindra said.