Cash crunch forces many Telangana expats in Persian Gulf to drop travel plans

Thousands of migrant employees from Telangana stranded in Persian Gulf international locations and determined to return to house, have backed out from travelling in Vande Bharat particular flights being operated by Air India to evacuate Indians from overseas.

They say they’re merely not able to bear bills for his or her journey and in addition pay for his or her 14-day quarantine on their return to India.

The first Vande Bharat flight landed on the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) in Hyderabad late Saturday with 163 individuals, together with two infants from Kuwait. Most of them hail from Hyderabad whereas some have been from Nizamabad and Karimnagar districts.

“Only those who could afford to bear their travel expenses and also for their stay in paid quarantine centres in Hyderabad were brought from Kuwait. Those who cannot have to stay back,” E Chitti Babu, a senior official in-charge of Telangana NRI cell in state secretariat, mentioned.

He mentioned the fees for paid quarantine services vary from Rs 5,000 to Rs 30,000 for the 14-day interval, relying on the services for the NRIs. “For an ordinary accommodation, it is Rs 5,000, for a two-star hotel facility, it is Rs 15,000 and for three-star accommodation, it is Rs 30,000,” he mentioned.

Chitti Babu mentioned a few extra flights, one from the US and one other from the UK, can be bringing stranded Telugus to Hyderabad. “Similarly, some more flights from Abu Dhabi and Dubai would also be operated for the Telangana people,” he mentioned.

But hundreds of individuals, who had gone to the Gulf international locations in the hunt for livelihood, are usually not able to return as a result of they don’t seem to be able to bear the bills.

According to P Basanth Reddy, president of the Hyderabad-based Telangana Gulf Migrants Welfare Association president, many individuals from Telangana stranded in Kuwait had registered their names with the native authorities for returning to India, however backed out after coming to know that they should pay quarantine fees as properly.

“Thousands of poor migrant labourers from Telangana, who have been languishing in the Gulf countries like Dubai, Kuwait, Bahrain and UAE, have not been getting their wages for months. How can they be expected to bear their own expenses for their return in these present conditions?” Reddy requested.

A migrant employee Ganga Reddy stranded in Dammam in Saudi Arabia advised Hindustan Times that the state of affairs in his place was horrible and many individuals are determined to return house.

“We are afraid that we might contract Covid-19 and we are desperately looking up to the Telangana government to help us come back,” Reddy, who’s from Nizamabad district, mentioned.

Basanth Reddy mentioned his affiliation was making an attempt for sponsors to carry as many as individuals as potential from the Gulf international locations. “We are also helping the families of these migrants back home, as they are in utter poverty,” he mentioned.

All India Congress Committee spokesman Dasoju Sravan demanded that the Telangana authorities carry again stranded labourers within the Gulf international locations freed from price. He mentioned there greater than 12-15 lakh employees from Telangana, together with each women and men within the Gulf international locations.

Many of the labourers are being laid off from their employment resulting from Covid-19 pandemic. Most of them don’t have entry to correct livelihood and medical care and are compelled to stay in most hazardous circumstances and are apprehensive concerning the unfold of Covid-19.

“In these circumstances, the government of Telangana should coordinate and collaborate with central government and bring back whosoever is desirous to return to India at free of cost. It is improper on the part of the government to charge airfares to return to India as the labour is already in most vulnerable situation without income,” Sravan mentioned.

The Telangana NRI cell in-charge, nevertheless, dominated out the potential of the federal government bearing the journey bills of the Gulf migrants. “We have no such plans as of now,” Chitti Babu mentioned.

Meanwhile, the returnees from Kuwait have been screened completely at each stage within the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport earlier than they have been shifted to the quarantine centres of their selection within the early hours of Sunday.