57% of people from NE lost job in Delhi during lockdown : Study

NEW DELHI, Feb 24
Around 57% of the people from the North East who had migrated to Delhi lost their jobs during the Covid-19 lockdown in 2020, highlighted a study conducted by a doctoral scholar of Jawaharlal Nehru University. The research also showed that 40% of them had returned to their States during the period.
The study, conducted by Gaidimlung K Jacob of Centre for Study of Regional Development, was presented on Thursday during a two-day international conference, Social Determinants of Health Inequality and Health Inequity: Impact of Covid-19, organised by Delhi University's Jesus and Mary College.
Jacob interviewed 439 migrants from the North Eastern region living across Delhi, including Munirka, Safdarjung, Moti Bagh and Kishangarh. Out of them, 70% were youths under 30 years.
Most of the respondents said they came to Delhi for two reasons - education and livelihood. A majority of them were women who came to earn a living and mostly worked in the hospitality sector, while most of the men were working at BPOs. Due to the pandemic, the maximum economic loss was faced by the self-employed and 52% of the private sector employees. Among the sample group, 76.6% were employed in the private sector, 14.2% in the public sector and 9.2% were self-employed.
The study also found that 82% of the respondents working in the beauty sector and 67% of those in restaurants lost their jobs. For the airline industry, the number is 65%, and 61% for the retail industry.
"I also found that the migrants in the informal sector were worst-affected. Those with lower social capital and educational levels have borne the brunt during the lockdown. There is an urgent need at the policy level to address their grievances by formalising the informal service sector with proper social security benefits and better employment security," said Jacob.
During the conference, other scholars also discussed the impact of Covid on elderlies, women reproductive health, healthcare workers, and mental health and well-being. Sushma Bhatnagar, head of anaesthesiology, pain and palliative care at AIIMS Delhi, asked students to help identify people with post-Covid syndromes around them. "We have a lot of cases of people dealing with post-Covid issues. It would be nice if students can help in identifying the post-syndromes of people and guide them in getting help. We at AIIMS can provide training and workshop on it," said Bhatnagar.  
Times of India