Kavita Awaasthi (HINDUSTAN TIMES; May 17, 2020)

Just a few days ago, actor Sonu Sood organised 10 buses for migrant workers to take them back home to Gulbarga, Karnataka. Now, the Dabangg (2010) actor has organised multiple bus services to take migrant workers to Uttar Pradesh (UP). Amidst the ongoing Coronavirus crisis,, Sood has taken extra precautions and after several efforts, managed to get official permissions from the UP state government to send migrants to their home towns.

“Helping him in the endeavour to help hundreds of migrants meet their families is Sood’s good friend Neeti Goel, who’s also a part of this initiative. Multiple buses left from Wadala, Mumbai on May 15 to various parts of UP including Lucknow, Hardoi, Pratapgarh and Siddharthnagar, as well as to cities in Jharkhand and Bihar. Sonu was present to bid goodbye to the migrants and even made arrangements for their meals,” says a source.

Opening up about the same, Sood says, “It has been an extremely emotional journey for me, as my heart pains to see these migrants staying away from their homes and trying to walk all the way home. I will continue sending migrants home until the last migrant reunites with his family and loved ones. This is something really close to my heart and I will give it my all.”

Onkar Kulkarni (BOMBAY TIMES; May 12, 2020)

After opening up his hotel to the healthcare workers fighting Coronavirus and distributing PPE kits to doctors, Sonu Sood has now come to the aid of migrant workers stuck in Mumbai. Yesterday, he arranged for 10 buses to carry hundreds of such labourers from Thane to their hometown, Gulbarga, in Karnataka.

He tells us, “I couldn’t see people as old as 80 years old walking back to their hometowns, hundreds of kilometres away, with no food. There were some newborns, too, being carried in the arms of their parents. So, I got in touch with the governments of Maharashtra and Karnataka to help arrange transport for them. The process was tedious, but finally, 10 buses left on Monday morning. With some help, I also arranged food for them.”

The actor is now working towards making similar arrangements for migrant workers from Odisha, Jharkhand, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, who are stuck in Mumbai.
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After procuring permission from state governments, Sonu Sood arranges 10 buses to take 350 migrant workers home to Karnataka from Thane
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; May 12, 2020)

Over the past several weeks, the country has been waking up to heartbreaking stories of countless migrant workers walking home, even as the state governments struggle to find a solution. Now, actor Sonu Sood has organised transportation for a section of migrants who have been stuck in Mumbai amid the lockdown. Yesterday, the actor arranged for 10 buses to take 350 workers to their hometown Gulbarga, Karnataka, from Thane.

Sood, who had procured the necessary permission from Maharashtra and Karnataka governments, tells mid-day, "This is the first lot of buses. We arranged for fruits, meals and water for their travel. The Maharashtra government officials helped us in organising the paperwork, and a special mention to the Karnataka government for welcoming the migrants back home."

In the coming days, the actor intends to extend the service to other states across the country. "We are in the last leg of procuring permission to send people to Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Bihar. We need to help the migrants get home safely."