Four Nepali migrant workers, including two from Khotang, have been stranded in Saudi Arabia after they were made redundant by their employer. Dipak Rai and Tanka Rai of Khotang, along with Lekh Magar of Terhathum and Shaligram Neupane of Syangja, had together flown to Saudi Arabia around eight years ago to work as manual labourers through Kathmandu-based Global Manpower.

According to their family sources, the employer company had not paid them any salary for the past one-and-a-half months. 

Safe Immigration Project Information Centre in Khotang, citing the telephone call of one of the victims, informed that the company had even stopped providing them food for the past six months.

“Since the company has shown no interest in providing us any work, pay or to send us home, we’re surviving from the charity of our fellow compatriots,” the centre quoted Neupane saying over the phone.

Meanwhile, a migrant worker of Banjhechyandanda in Khotang, who had reached Qatar for employment about three months back, has received compensation after he did not receive the salary as per his contract. 

Praja Kumar Bhujel had informed his kin back home after the company he was supposed to work for informed him that it would provide him only 400 riyal — 1000 riyal less than what was mentioned in the contract. Upon getting the information, Bhujel’s kin had filed an application with the Diktel-based centre. 

According to Shaharman Rai, a counsellor at the centre, the company had later paid Rs 60,000 in reparation to the concerned family.

Published on: 5 March 2015 | The Kathmandu Post