Punjabis trapped in Iraq: Badal to meet Sushma Swaraj again

To impress upon her for expediting the process of bringing back 39 Punjabis trapped in Iraq

Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Monday said that he would again meet the Union Minister for External Affairs (MEA) Sushma Swaraj soon, to impress upon her for expediting the process of bringing back 39 Punjabis trapped in the Mosul region of the war torn Iraq.

An assurance to this regard was given by the Chief Minister to a delegation of the family members of these Punjabis. The Chief Minister said that he was personally keeping a close liaison with the Union Government, officers of MEA and the special envoy of India to Iraq Suresh Reddy to ensure safe and prompt return of every Punjabi stuck up in strife torn Iraq.

Expressing satisfaction over the efforts made by the Union Government in this regard, he exhorted the distressed families to have faith on the Government of India (GoI), which was not leaving any stone unturned for safely evacuating every single Indian from Iraq. Badal also assured them that on its part the state government was making strenuous efforts to expedite the process for release of next of their kin, who were trapped in Iraqi civil war.

The Chief Minister also spoke to Special Envoy of Indian Government to Iraq Suresh Reddy over phone, to have the latest update over this issue.

Reddy informed the Chief Minister that all these 39 Punjabis were safe and the GoI was exploiting all the diplomatic channels for ensuring their early release.

The Special envoy also apprised Badal of the fact that they were also in touch with the owner of the factory where these workers were employed, so that they could be evacuated at the earliest.

18 more Punjabis return home safely

As many as 18 Punjabis returned from strife torn Iraq at New Delhi on Sunday night by special flights due to the persistent efforts of Punjab government. Disclosing this in Chandigarh on Monday a spokesperson of the Chief Minister's office said that as per the information received from the office of Resident Commissioner at Punjab Bhawan, New Delhi, 18 Punjabi youth which arrived at Indira Gandhi International Airport on Sunday evening.