By IANS,
Thiruvananthapuram : Over 30 people from Kerala are languishing at a labour camp in Libya with little food and no money, their families said here, urging the authorities to work for their repatriation.
A.P. Madhu, a resident of Aluva near Kochi, met Leader of Opposition Oommen Chandy and provided him with details of 34 people, including his uncle and brother.
“The last time I contacted them in Libya, they said they are not even getting the basic amenities and are in serious trouble,” Madhu said.
The Keralites were employed with an Indonesian construction firm and their two-year contract got over end of last year. Since then, neither has their work permit been renewed, nor have they been paid their outstanding salaries.
In November last year, news surfaced that around 74 Keralites were living illegally in Libya. Chandy’s office took up the issue with central minister of Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi, whose ministry facilitated the return of 40 of them in two batches by mid-December.
A spokesperson for Chandy’s office said that the leader is in constant touch with New Delhi and they are hoping that the ordeal of 34 remaining workers will end soon.