V Muraleedharan, India’s Minister of State for External and Parliamentary Affairs, said in a Facebook post on Friday that it would not be prudent to repatriate Indians from other countries at this point of time.
He said, “I have received a lot of issues concerning Indian expats directly, through media channels and through the ministry, and most of them have to do with these Indians wanting to return home.”
The Indian government on April 14 announced an extension to the nation-wide lockdown to combat the spread of COVID-19. The lockdown is set to end on May 3. This also applies to the suspension of all international and domestic flights in the country.
The extension has put stranded Indian expats in Kuwait and the wider region in distress. Kuwait has said that the country is ready to assist in the repatriation of ex-pats who want to return home – provided the expats’ nations open borders for such repatriation.
On Friday, his post added, “During this time when COVID-19 is spreading and without adequate quarantine facilities ready, repatriating non-resident Indians will push them into more problems – this is why the central government is not taking any hasty decisions.”
Muraleedharan said, “The Narendra Modi government is not ready for any decision that will put people’s safety and lives at risk. However, we are addressing the concerns of expatriate Indians. The latest example of this is the government’s instruction toa airlines that money spent on tickets booked during the lockdown period should be refunded.”
The minister went on to say that the central government is constantly working to address expat concerns and help alleviate problems.
Kuwait in a relief measure for expats, informed residents and visitors that expired residency visas or entry permits [including visit visas and tourist visas] will stay valid until May 31 with no penalties if the expiry of such document was after March 1.
Kuwait has announced an amnesty program for undocumented workers with a free ticket back home. The Kuwait government has said there are more than 40,000 undocumented Indian workers out of almost 1 million Indians residing in the country.