Over 20% labour leaves Jalandhar amid Chhath Puja, industries face slowdown

As trainloads of migrants head to their native places in Bihar during the ongoing Chhath Puja, industry owners in Jalandhar are growing increasingly concerned. Factory owners report that 20–22 per cent of their labour force has left Punjab and is not expected back for at least a month, causing a slowdown in operations.

With Bihar elections scheduled from November 6 to 11, the festival period this year has seen an unusually high rush of migrants returning home. Many are traveling with their families and large amounts of luggage, raising doubts among factory owners about their timely return.

Narinder S Sagoo, President of Focal Point Extension, said, “We have made every effort to ensure that our labour does not leave in large numbers. Over the past year, we ensured sufficient water in the DAV Canal near Beant Singh Park for puja rituals, set up stalls selling puja items and arranged two mega cultural programmes to entertain families. But none of this has worked this time.”

Sagoo added that the exodus is not limited to Bihari migrants; many workers from UP’s Bhojpur region have also returned home. “We had hoped they would take only 2–3 day leaves instead of a month-long or indefinite break. I have 400 workers in my factory, of whom 80–90 have already left. Other factories face a similar situation,” he said.

Factory owners fear that political parties calling migrants back with incentives—monetary or otherwise—may worsen the situation. “If they receive good incentives, they might not return soon, which could lead to bigger troubles for us,” they warned.