NEW DELHI: The Union home ministry has asked all states and Union territories to ensure the welfare of migrant labourers housed in shelter/camps within their jurisdiction and adopt a humane approach while dealing with their fears and anxieties regarding the lockdown.The advisory comes in the wake of recent directions by the Supreme Court for ensuring adequate medical facilities besides proper arrangements for food, clean drinking water and sanitation for migrant workers at relief camps/shelters across the country. The court also ordered that trained counsellors and/or community group leaders belonging to all faiths visit the relief camps/ shelter homes and deal with any consternation that the migrants might be going through.The Court had observed that the anxiety and fear of the migrants should be understood by the police and other authorities, and that they should deal with the migrants in a humane manner. Further, state governments and UT administrations were told to engage volunteers to work along with the police to supervise welfare activities of the migrants.The MHA latest communication on migrants’ welfare reiterated the directions given in an earlier letter by the ministry of health and family welfare to all states and UTs, asking the latter to deal tactfully with psychosocial issues among migrants. As per these directions, the local authorities were told to deal patiently with anxiety of migrants regarding being locked away from home. The authorities were asked to help the migrants acknowledge that the lockdown was an unusual situation of uncertainty and reassure them that the situation was only transient. Even if the migrants were to react negatively and appear insulting to the authorities, the latter were advised to be understanding and patient.