Bhubaneswar: A group of 35 labourers belonging to Odisha were allegedly held captive by a company for which they were working in Laos, a Southeast Asian country, prompting Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik to direct the administration to ensure their safe return home.
Urging the government to bring them back, the labourers in a video message said the plywood company stopped its operations about one-and-a-half-months ago, but they were neither allowed to return nor paid wages.
The workers from Rajkanika block in the coastal district of Kendrapara district alleged that the company had also forcibly taken away their passports.
After it was brought to the notice of the Odisha government, the chief minister directed the officials to safely bring them back home.
Following this, the state labour commissioner has taken up the issue with the Indian embassy in Laos, a CMO official said.
The Embassy authorities have informed the Odisha authorities that all steps will be taken for the safe return of the workers to India.
The labourers had sent the video message to people in their village, who contacted the local MLA. The legislator in turn brought it to the notice of the state government.
“We have no money or food to eat. We are also not allowed to return,” said one Saroj Palai, one of the labourers who were held captive in Laos.
PTI