RAJ KUMAR
Ranchi, Jan.18: A group of 33 Indian labourers trapped in Mali in South Africa will return to India by flight with their two- month salary after deducting their food charge.
Though the date of return has not been finalized due to the limited number of flights, their employer will ensure that they are provided an economy class air ticket from Bamako to Ranchi in the earliest available flight.
This has become possible after a meeting was held on Tuesday at the Chancery on the initiative of Indian Embassy at Bamako in the presence of head of chancery of Embassy of India, V Vijay Pandey and ACO of the same embassy Rakesh Kumar Diwakar with representative of workers’ employer, M/S K&P Constructions (Bougouri, Hermenkoro, Mali), Satya Durga Prasad and representatives of workers, Rooplal Mahto.
After the meeting, an agreement took place. Under the terms of the agreement, the company will release salaries for October and November 2021. The salary will be paid at the rate of $400 per month for general workers minus food charge of $75 per month and $450 per person per month for supervisors minus food charge of $75 per month.
Accordingly, general workers will receive INR equivalent of $650 for two months and supervisors will receive INR equivalent to $750 for two months. The salary will be transferred within 5 days of this agreement to the workers’ bank account in India in Indian Rupees.
A worker, Indradeo Thakur, had not got a salary for the last six months. Regarding him it was agreed that his salary will be transferred at the rate of $400 per month minus food charges $75 per month i.e. the company will transfer INR equivalent to $1,950 in his account within five days.
Currently, in view of the pandemic, there is only a weekly flight from Bamako to India available every Saturday.
Till the time these employees depart from MaIi, companies will take care of their everyday needs such as food, shelter and emergency services, if any. Employees will give a ‘no due certificate’ to the company after receiving their dues and air tickets to Ranchi for all the 33 persons.
Both employees and the company will treat each other respectfully in the period leading up to the departure of all the 33 persons in India. K&P will inform the embassy about the compliance of this agreement.
It is to be known that the workers had gone to work on the Senin Koraba-Bougouni section power transmission line project under India’s line of Credit. They showed their willingness to return to India after they did not get their salary for three months.
Lagatar News had first published with priority the case of 33 labourers of Hazaribagh and Giridih districts of Jharkhand trapped in Mali. As the matter came into the knowledge of the Jharkhand government, it swung into action sensing the gravity of the situation.
