Punjab Chief Secretary Sarvesh Kaushal, along with several other state officials, today received 19 Punjabis arriving from strife-torn Iraq at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport here.
The Chief Secretary was deputed by Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal to receive the Punjabis returning from Iraq in special flights and ensure that the immigration clearance process at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport was hassle-free.
A spokesperson of the Chief Minister's Office said, out of 19 Punjabis who arrived here today, 12 came by a special flight of Sharjah Airlines and seven were on the Indian Airlines chartered plane, along with 46 nurses from Kerala.
Kaushal, accompanied by Punjab's Resident Commissioner in New Delhi K Siva Prasad, had been personally overseeing the procedure of immigration clearance at the IGI Airport to ensure that none of them faced any harassment at the hands of authorities.
Majority of the Indians returning from Iraq were not having valid documents/immigration papers in possession.
The spokesperson further said that the Chief Secretary was in constant touch with the officials of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and Indian Embassy in Iraq to ensure safe evacuation of Punjabis stuck in violence-hit areas.
The spokesperson said two senior officers from Punjab Bhawan had been placed at the airport immigration section to help those returning from Iraq.
More Punjabis are expected to land at the IGI Airport tomorrow and elaborate arrangements have been made at Punjab Bhawan for their stay. The Punjab government has also arranged free transport for them to reach their native places.
Badal had earlier announced a financial assistance of Rs 20,000 per month for the families of 40 Punjabis stuck in Iraq's Mosul region.
