HYDERABAD: It was around 3 am when Dakshana Murthy and other Indians residing in Iraq’s Erbil were jolted from their sleep by the sound of a massive explosion on Wednesday. It took another three hours for them to realise that a US military base, situated just 20 km from where they were living, was hit by ballistic missiles fired by Iran.
For Murthy, who is the president of Telugu Gulf Employees Welfare Association (TGWEA), and 8,000 others hailing from Telangana life has become a constant game of cat and mouse with death following Iran’s action, which was in response to the killing of Iranian Major General Qasem Soleimani.
Speaking to Express from Erbil, Murthy said, "The situation is very tense over here. Iran just fired on a military base. We are fortunate that no one was caught in the explosion and that it happened in the dead of the night."
Following the blast, there is tight security in the area. He said that there are also severe restrictions on people’s movements. "We are trying to stay indoors as much as possible. But, whatever happens we have to keep working," Murthy, who is a resident of Nirmal, added.
Most of the 8,000 odd migrant workers from Telangana are employed in the construction sector and many others are working as domestic helps in one of the most populated cities in the Kurdistan region of the country.
While most of these workers hail from districts like Adilabad, Karimnagar, Nizamabad, Nirmal and Mancherial, there are around 40,000 more migrant workers from the State making a living in others parts of Iraq.
Appeal to government
TGWEA vice-president Ramachandra Rayalwar appealed the Central government to rescue them from the area. “The Philippines government has already started the evacuation process. Even though it does not have an embassy in Iraq, Nepal too struck an agreement and started evacuating their citizens,” Rayalwar said.
“What will we do with a mere alert” he wondered, referring to a travel advisory issued by the Ministry of External Affairs, urging the citizens to avoid non-essential travel to Iraq. It also asked the Indians residing in Iraq to be alert. “What do we do by being alert? It is very hard to keep track of others,” he said.
Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas on
Despite the tense situation, the TGWEA is set to go ahead with their plans to celebrate the Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas on Thursday, with the participation of around 500 people from the two Telugu States. Now, the event will serve as a platform to share their experiences and assess the situation
In touch with government
The TGWEA has shared its concerns with the State government’s NRI Department. E Chitti Babu, NRI official in General Affairs Department, said that the Centre has to take a decision and the State govt may write a letter to the Centre on the issue