Daijiworld Media Network – Ranchi

Ranchi, Oct 31: As many as 48 migrant workers from Jharkhand, stranded in Tunisia, have made a desperate appeal to the Indian government to facilitate their safe return home. The workers, hailing from Giridih, Hazaribagh, and Bokaro districts, released a video detailing the alleged exploitation they have been facing at the hands of their employer.

According to the workers, they were recruited by Gurugram-based Prem Power Construction Private Limited, which promised them eight-hour workdays and proper employment agreements upon arrival in Tunisia. However, once they reached the site, they discovered that it was contract-based work without any formal papers.

“We were told we would get our agreement papers after reaching Tunisia, but there are none. We’re being forced to work 12 hours a day instead of eight. When we ask for payment, we are threatened with jail and told we won’t be able to return to India,” one worker said in the video message.

The stranded workers further alleged that they have not received their salaries for the past four months, leaving them with no money to buy food or sustain themselves.

Social activist Sikandar Ali has urged both the state and central governments to take immediate diplomatic action for their rescue. Meanwhile, Bagodar MLA Nagendra Mahato announced that he will write to External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, demanding that the workers be brought back safely and that their pending wages be cleared.

The 48 stranded workers include 19 from Hazaribagh, 14 from Giridih, and 15 from Bokaro districts. Their families back home have also appealed to the government to intervene swiftly to ensure their safe return to India.