Ranchi:
The Jharkhand government on Sunday said 11 of the 47 workers stranded in Cameroon in central Africa had been brought to the state and efforts were on for the safe return of the remaining workers.
The development comes after the state government filed FIRs against a Mumbai-based company and some middlemen for alleged non-payment of wages to 47 workers of the state, who were stuck in the African country.
“Eleven of the 47 migrant workers from Jharkhand, stranded in Cameroon, were brought to the state as per instructions from Chief Minister Hemant Soren. All workers were sent to their homes by the Labor Department. The return of the remaining 36 workers has also been assured,” said a statement from the Prime Minister's Secretariat.
Earlier this month, the labor commissioner had filed FIRs against middlemen and employers at Hazaribag, Bokaro and Giridih police stations, on the instructions of Soren, who had received complaints that these workers had not received their wages for three months.
After the government took action, the process to pay wages to the workers was initiated, the statement said.
“The control room team has been in constant contact with the officials, company and employees through email and telephone and the total outstanding amount of Rs 39.77 lakh has been paid to the employees,” the statement said.
It alleged that the employers and intermediaries sent these workers to Cameroon without registering them under the Inter-State Migrant Workers (Regulation of Employment and Terms of Service) Act, 1979, and without obtaining the required permit.
The workers drew the CM's attention for non-payment of their wages for three months, following which the State Migration Control Chamber contacted the workers and employers.
The state government has also sought the contract and wage details of the workers, among other documents.
Efforts were being made to ensure the safe return of workers and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been informed, the statement said.
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