The Jharkhand government announced that 11 of the 47 migrant workers stranded in Cameroon, Central Africa, have safely returned to the state. The hurried steps followed the grievances of the workers being stuck as unpaid for a three-month period. Efforts are now underway to ensure that the remaining 36 workers will also be safely flown back, as the Chief Minister's office of the state informed on Sunday.
The workers had been sent through a contractor who got them employed in Mumbai. However, for a couple of months, there have been no wages for these workers, the reports stated. After hearing the allegations, Chief Minister Hemant Soren directed the state Labour Department to take needed actions. Thus, FIRs were filed against the employers and middlemen for their alleged non-payment and illegal recruitment practices. The complaints were raised by workers during September, which prompted government intervention.
FIRs were initiated by the Labour Commissioner under various police stations, including Hazaribag, Bokaro, and Giridih. With the involvement of the Migrant Control Room, the state collaborated with all the officials and contacted the employers for a possible resolution. As of now, the workers’ total outstanding wages of Rs 39.77 lakh have been successfully disbursed.
The government’s investigation revealed that the workers were sent to Cameroon without the required registration under the Inter-State Migrant Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1979. Additionally, the necessary licenses were not obtained by the middlemen and the employers, further complicating the situation.
The state took a lot of measures regarding the safety and return of all the affected workers. The Ministry of External Affairs has also been alerted for the facilitation of the repatriation. While 11 workers have been brought back to the country, the government has not yet given up on the other 36, according to the statement from the Chief Minister's Secretariat.
