In a distressing case highlighting the perils of overseas recruitment, twelve labourers from Uttar Pradesh's Pilibhit district are reportedly stranded and facing severe harassment in Kyrgyzstan. Their desperate families have now approached the state administration, pleading for their immediate rescue and safe return to India.
Families Allege Torture and Extortion
The families of the trapped men have made grave allegations, stating their relatives are being subjected to torture. They claim that local recruitment agents are now demanding up to ₹2 lakh for each worker's safe return. The situation has grown increasingly dire, with the labourers sending video messages home, appealing for help and describing their plight.
The twelve workers have been identified as Ravi Kumar, Ajay, Chandrapal, Santram, Rohit, Ramesh, Harswaroop, Shyamcharan, Sanjeev, Prempal, Ramasare, and Harishankar. According to their families, they were sent to Kyrgyzstan approximately three months ago by agents operating a local recruitment agency based in Pilibhit.
Misleading Contracts and Harsh Conditions
Relatives revealed that each worker paid around ₹2.5 lakh to the agents based on promises of lucrative jobs. They were sent on short-term, 59-day visas under what the families term "misleading contracts." Once abroad, the reality turned grim.
The families allege the men are now being forced to work in different cities across Kyrgyzstan, are denied proper food, and are prevented from returning home. In a heart-wrenching claim, they stated the workers are being physically assaulted and treated "worse than animals." All twelve have expressed their fervent wish to return to India at the earliest.
Administration Springs into Action
The Pilibhit district administration has compiled and sent a comprehensive report to the Uttar Pradesh Home Department regarding the crisis. District Magistrate Gyanendra Singh confirmed the action on Friday, December 6, 2024. He stated the report was prepared after a formal request from the Home Department for a detailed factual account.
"Information about all 12 persons stranded in Kyrgyzstan has been compiled and sent to the government so that the due process can be initiated for their safe return," DM Singh told PTI. The district police have also launched a probe. Superintendent of Police Abhishek Yadav has assigned the investigation to CO City Deepak Chaturvedi.
Officials confirmed that the families have submitted written complaints, naming a local firm and its representatives from a city colony as the entities responsible for sending the men abroad on false pretences. The video appeals from the stranded labourers have been included as evidence in the ongoing investigation.
The district magistrate expressed hope that the administration's detailed report would enable the state government to initiate formal steps for the swift repatriation of the twelve beleaguered workers from Pilibhit.
