The trials and tribulations of the migrant/guest workers impacted by the ongoing COVID crisis is just half the story. Yes, it is sad that they trudged hundred of kilometres to get back home, and it is disappointing that the PM did not show enough empathy towards them in his last speech. Yes, they are jobless, homeless, and probably penniless too. Their lives are tough. One missing paycheck, one health issue, or one high-school graduating kid aspiring for college education, can put them squarely into the hands of loan sharks, never to get out of those clutches at least for one whole generation. It is tough for many of us to fathom how much on the edge they live. The real story however is not that they are in a tough spot today, but what made them get to the brink within weeks of a national shutdown. It is a story of them living precariously, month after month, exploited by state governments because it costs them nothing to keep them in the new state, exploited by contractors and