Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Wednesday thanked his cabinet colleague, S Jaishankar, the External Affairs Minister, for his intervention in bringing back the stranded Odisha migrant workers from Dubai.
Pradhan, who hails from Odisha, in a tweet, said, "Met my Odia brothers on their safe return to India. I took the matter with Ministry of External Affairs after videos of their ordeal in Dubai had surfaced on social media. Thank EAM Dr S Jaishankar and Consulate General of India, Dubai for their sincere efforts in repatriating them back home & ensuring their well-being."
Earlier this month, Pradhan had written to Jaishankar, requesting his personal intervention in the release and repatriation of 10 people from Odisha, who were held captive by their employers in the Persian Gulf country.
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According to media reports, the labourers were forced to work under extreme conditions for excessive hours. The matter came to light after a few workers took to social media to share their plight.
Prabhat Kumar Mahapatra, one of the rescued workers, said, "I with nine other people went to Dubai last year on July 1. We bought a ticket of Rs 80,000 to Dubai. But the company, for which we went there, was shut within three months. We had no money as we didn't get paid in those three months."
The worker further alleged that the agent stopped answering his phone.
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"We finally shot a video and it became viral. I am very thankful to Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan that he reached out for help and we came back to India," he further said.
(ANI)
