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After Saudi, more than 100 Indian labourers face starvation in UAE

  • Labourers of an engineering firm in UAE are facing starvation after the employers failed to pay them for five months. 
  • More than 100 labourers are struggling to survive in a labour camp, with poor food supply and basic amenities. 
  • The visa duration of most workers have expired, making it difficult for them to even seek medical treatment at hospitals.
After Saudi UAE too reports labour issues

Days after the Union Government resolved a major labour crisis in Saudi Arabia, over 100 Indian labourers working for an engineering company in Fujirah in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are on the brink of starvation. Denied salary for five months, the labourers are waiting for the government's intervention to save them from the foreign country. 
 

As many as 130 labourers including 35 Malayalees of Emirates Engineering Company alleged that they have not been paid wages for the past five months. Things got worse after the company stopped the food distribution at the camp, Asianet News reports.


"I am worried about my family back home, we don't have even a single penny with us," says Rajeev, a distressed worker.

The company is owned two Keralites, Sreekumar and Sudhikumar, both natives of Kayamkulam. The owners allegedly told the workers that the company was running at loss and hence the salaries could not be paid. The labourers were also told that they were free to return home at their own expense.  

 

"At present, six to eight workers stay in tiny cottages, the power and water supply to the building would be disconnected in a couple of days after which it would be impossible to survive here under the harsh climate," said Shivaparad, another labourer.

 

When the issue was brought to the notice of Indian Embassy, the workers got basic salary for one month, but no further action was taken. The labourers also alleged that the embassy officials did not bother to pay a visit to the camp. 

 

Meanwhile, T P Seetharam, Indian Ambassador to the UAE informed that further assistance could be given only with the help of UAE government and with the co-operation of employers. 

 

Last month, Indian Government evacuated 2,500 workers from Saudi Arabia after construction companies shut shop in view of plummeting oil prices. Nearly 10,000 workers had been laid off following the crisis. 

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