Neeraj Kumar, 30, a worker in a plywood factory in Ghaziabad has been sleeping at the local railway station for the past two days, waiting for a train where he can get a place in a general compartment. He has to go back to Gumla district in Jharkhand, from where he had come to Ghaziabad in 2024 in search of a job.
“Initially, I worked in a detergent factory for a salary of ₹15,000 per month. Then I got a job in a plywood factory for ₹20,000 a month. But it appears that I am not very lucky — the LPG crisis caused by the war (in West Asia) has made living here impossible,” Kumar said.
“We use a cylinder which contains 5kg of gas. It used to cost us ₹300. Currently, we are buying 1kg of gas for ₹300. There was no LPG at all two weeks ago. Now it is available, but at a much higher price. The uncertainty persists,” he said, adding: “The dealer held back LPG stocks in his godown and didn’t provide it to customers for a few days to create panic. Now he is charging an exorbitant price.”
“The trains are already full when they arrive here (at Ghaziabad station) from New Delhi. People from Delhi are also returning to their homes in large numbers. I have breathing issues, I’ll have to get into a compartment that has sufficient space,” Kumar said.
The exodus of factory workers from the National Capital Region because of the war-triggered LPG crisis is becoming severe by the day.
Ghaziabad, an important industrial district of Uttar Pradesh barely 20km from New Delhi, is one of the worst-affected.
Members of Ghaziabad’s Sahibabad Industries Association said thousands of workers had left their jobs in the past three weeks and returned home in east Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand because of the LPG crisis. Production in these industrial units has come down by 25 per cent, the association said.
“We have had to close several industrial units. If the reverse migration continues at this rate, we will soon be forced to shut many more,” an office-bearer of the association said.
Around 50,000 workers are engaged at over 2,000 factories in the Sahibabad Industrial Area. Transportation of raw materials to our factories was already a problem after the war began because of a reduction in the number of vehicles and also the general economic gloom triggered by the conflict. The labour exodus has worsened the situation. Industry sources in the area said only around 30,000 workers were coming to work.
Dinesh Mittal, the president of the association, said: “The LPG shortage is taking a toll on our production. Besides other factories, there are units here that manufacture toys, electric fans and powder coating. They are not being able to meet the demand because of the exodus of labourers from the city.”
“We have urged the government to address the LPG crisis on a priority basis and also expedite the installation of PNG connections,” Mittal said.
“There are 190 units which have either closed or are working only partially. Many owners are contemplating shifting to Punjab and Madhya Pradesh because
the governments in those states have tried to handle the problems of factories in a better manner. Uttar Pradesh often leaves us on our own,” he added.