Gulf victims: Opposition slates govt laxity

Says State government is doing nothing to address various issues faced by migrant labourers in Gulf countries

​Hyderabad: Questioning the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) government on its NRI policy, the Opposition parties demanded that the State government convene Assembly special session to discuss Gulf victims’ problems.

The Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) NRI Cell organised a seminar on ‘Gulf Workers Welfare - Role of Governments’ at the Golden Jubilee Hall, Exhibition Grounds, Nampally here on Tuesday.

Participating in the seminar, TPCC chief N Uttam Kumar Reddy alleged that the TRS government did nothing to help the Gulf victims. He said the migrant labourers faced a lot of hardship in separate Telangana State than in the previous united Andhra Pradesh State.

Stating that five bodies from Gulf were coming to the State every day, Uttam assured that the Congress would allocate Rs 100 crore for the welfare of Gulf labour every year after 2019 elections. The Congress would also extend Rs 5 lakh each to the bereaved family of Gulf victims. He said the Congress would extend ‘Pravasi Bheema’ in Telangana State to the Gulf victims on the lines of Kerala State.

“We will provide ration card and voter card to every Gulf worker,” Uttam announced. Demanding that the government bring back the workers staying in Gulf jails to the State by extending legal help to them, the TPCC chief asked the State government to extend Arogya Sree scheme to every Gulf worker.

He said the State government must extend special training to those who want to go to Gulf countries by setting up legal centres and assured that the Congress would stand by the Gulf workers.

Former Minister Marri Shashidhar Reddy demanded that the State government count the immigrant labour from Telangana staying across the world. Former PCC chief Ponnala Laxmaiah alleged that the TRS government was sleeping like a Kumbha Karna for the last three years with regard to Gulf victims.

All India Congress Committee (AICC) secretary RC Kuntia alleged that the agents in Gulf countries were violating the labour acts and demanded that the Centre strengthen the Immigrant Labour Act immediately.

Former Minister and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) senior leader E Peddi Reddy said the people were going to Gulf countries by taking loans. He asked Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao to tell as to what he was doing to the Gulf victims as a son of the soil and demanded that the latter convene the Assembly to discuss the issue of Gulf victims.

Telangana Joint Action Committee (TJAC) chairman Prof M Kodandaram said the labour facing lot of troubles in Gulf countries. People were going to the Gulf countries as they were not getting livelihood in the State. East Asian labourers were main source for the economical system of the Gulf countries.

The State government had to see the problems of the Gulf victims in a humanitarian angle and curb irregularities of agents and immigration officials, he said. The TJAC would extend its full support to the main Opposition party Congress with regard to the Gulf labourer issue, Kodandaram said.

CPI former MLA Gunda Mallesham said the Chief Minister worked as a Gulf agent in the past. The Chief Minister knew the problems of the Gulf labour very well. He was acting in a manner that he was solving the problems of the Gulf victims. But, the governments were failing in controlling the fake agents totally, he alleged.