Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today called up former Indian Ambassador to Iraq Suresh Reddy who has been sent there as a special envoy to oversee rescue operations of Indians trapped in the strife- torn country, and sought safe return of Punjabis from there.
Badal urged Reddy to sort out the issues of those Punjabis who were willing to come back but their employers were reluctant to relieve them due to certain reasons.
He said the Centre must get any issue related to the employers settled through direct intervention of Labour department of Iraqi government on priority.
He said Punjabis willing to return home but hesitating to do so due to financial constraints should come back as the state government would bear all their expenses or that incurred by their families.
The Chief Minister said it was the duty of the state to help distressed Punjabis and their families in this hour of crisis by relieving them of such mental agony.
Meanwhile, Joint Secretary (Gulf and Haj) in the Ministry of External Affairs Mridul Kumar called on the Chief Minister here this morning to apprise him of the initiatives taken by the Centre for safe and early evacuation of Indians, especially Punjabis, struck there.
Badal asked him to pull out Punjabis trapped in the war zone there.
