48 stranded migrant workers return from Tunisia

Forty-eight migrant workers from Jharkhand, allegedly stranded in Tunisia, have safely returned to their home districts, officials said on Saturday.

Team leader at the Migrant Control Cell (Jharkhand Labour department) Shikha Lakra told PTI on Saturday that all the migrant workers reached their homes on Friday.

''They returned in different batches based on their flights from Tunisia to Mumbai and returned to their home districts of Hazaribagh, Giridih and Bokaro by train. The last batch reached Bokaro on Friday. All the workers had their three months' salary cleared by the employing company,'' said Lakra.

''The migrants had shared a video narrating their ordeals, and this reached Chief Minister Hemant Soren, and he directed for prompt action by the Labour department to ensure safe arrival of the workers and clearing of their outstanding salaries (nearly Rs 30 lakh), which had led them to face financial hardships,'' said Lakra.

''We got in touch with the Indian Embassy and relevant agencies and completed the process and travel formalities,'' said Lakra.

The workers were employed by a private firm.

''Following the chief minister's instructions, the Labour department officials met with the workers and learned about their problems in detail at their home districts. The government is now taking steps to cover these workers and their families under various welfare schemes so that they are not forced to migrate,'' the official said.

According to information, the workers were employed for laying high transmission wires through a private company.