HYDERABAD: With the National Assembly of Kuwait approving the Expat Quota Bill that will lead to the repatriation of around eight lakh Indians from the Gulf nation, several migrant workers from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh have started raising their voices, demanding the Indian government to repatriate them back to the country.
This group of migrants, which also includes people from Bihar, Odisha, Tripura, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Tripura, had no source of income since the lockdown was imposed in Kuwait. They have been residing in a small building and some times, 16 of them in a single room, increasing the possibility of them contracting the virus.
Radheshyam Chaudhary, a migrant from Bihar, said: "We work in a construction company here. We have been trapped here for a long time. It is very problematic. Neither have they given us salary for the last five months nor they are letting us return home. We don’t know what we will do for food in the future. Please save us."
Speaking to Express, Gulf migrant activist Basanth Reddy, said: "These workers are facing a lot of issues. They have no work, no salary. They approached the Indian Embassy. But there was no response from the Embassy. They have been neglected and ignored. Though we have been trying to arrange food for them, they are fast losing hope. A few of them told me that they will take drastic steps if the situation does not improve soon"
"The Indian government should assuage their fears via our Embassy. It should discuss with the company in question and see to that the they are paid all their arrears. Then they could look at bringing them back home," he said.
Meanwhile, 39-year-old Kummari Lingam from Kamareddy district said he wants to return home. "Even though we worked for three months during the lockdown, we have not received any salary. Apart from that, there is another two months salary pending. We approached the labour court, but nothing has come of it yet. I just want to return home and see my children. Please help us," Lingam, whose wife and two children live in his native Isaipet village in Machareddty mandal, added.