At least 36 labourers from Jharkhand’s Giridih, Bokaro, Hazaribagh, and Dhanbad districts have been trapped in Tajikistan for the last few months, and they have requested the Central and State governments for their safe return to the nation, as per an official.
The stranded workers interacted with their respective family members and shared their difficulties through social media; they made it clear that the company that hired them has not paid their salary for four months. Apart from that, the firm has confiscated their passports and is providing limited food.
It is noticeable that this kind of crisis frequently occurs when the poor become the victims of fraud.
Sikandar Ali, who has been working for the rescue of migrant labourers, has appealed to the central and state governments to come forward and help the stranded workers in Tajikistan.
He said that due to a lack of employment opportunities, people want to land in foreign countries in search of jobs. But sometimes they have to face all kinds of torture. The government should make some arrangements to stop labourers from moving to other countries.
The agent of the company’s operations in India promised a handsome salary and other perks to labourers in December 2022, he said.
Hazaribag Deputy Commissioner Nancy Sahay said that she has received complaints from the family members of the trapped labourers and now they are being treated like bounded labours.
She further added that information has been sent to the State Migrant Cell to take the issue seriously with the concerned authorities and try for their safe release so that they can return to their native places as soon as possible.