Like every other migrant worker going abroad for foreign employment, Kabiraj Pariyar of Chhisti-7 had left for Saudi Arabia with the hopes of making a fortune. 

However, his dream was cut short on November 5, 2009, when he died in the country of his employment. Years have gone by since his death but Pariyar´s wife, Bishnudevi, has still not received compensation from the government for the loss. After the responsibility of her entire family fell on her shoulder, Bishnudevi started working as a daily wage laborer, but her earnings are so meager that she has to take loans even to meet the daily expenses. “My husband´s body was handed over to us six months after his death.

Until now, we have not received a single penny in compensation from the government. After waiting for nearly five years, my hope of receiving the money is just fading away,” said Bishnudevi. Bishnudevi accused concerned authorities like the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Foreign Employment Promotion Board of indifference to her plight. “I have knocked on almost every door for help, but no one is willing to listen to our demand for compensation,” said Bishnudevi. “Many people leave for foreign employment taking out heavy loans. Many of them endure hardships they had never imagined. The number of deaths among migrant workers is disturbing,” said Baglung Chief District Officer Baal Dev Gautam. 

As per the record of Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), in the last two years, 38 people have died abroad in the course of working from Baglung district alone. Meanwhile, Baglung District Administration Office (DAO) shared that they have received Rs 10.93 million as compensation fund for the families of the 38 deceased migrant workers from Baglung. The office said that it has already distributed the received compensation money to the family of the deceased. 

“We have already handed over the money to most of the bereaved families,” said DAO Chief Accountant Yuvaraj Sharma.  As per the record of the Foreign Employment Promotion Board, last year alone a total of 990 bodies were sent to Nepal from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Dubai and Malaysia.

“This record includes the deaths of only those who had left the country through legal channels. The number might be more because the rush of illegal migrant workers going to Gulf countries is excessively high these days,” said Director of the Foreign Employment Promotion Board, Raghu Kafley. 

Published on: 1 November 2014 | Republica