‘Selling’ youths lucrative trade in Iraq: Victims

Jalandhar, August 11
Reminiscent of the slave trade, Indian agents and their conduits in Iraq are minting millions of dollars “selling” young boys to owners of big farms and construction companies. Kulwinder Singh of Takhni village in Hoshiarpur said an agent in his village had charged him Rs 1.5 lakh for a job in the housekeeping department of the Iraqi army.
“Selling youths from India and other south Asian countries is a lucrative business in Iraq. Agents in India have numerous conduits in Iraq who sell the unsuspecting youths to sub-agents, who in turn sell them to owners of big agricultural farms and private construction companies,” he said.
“We first landed at Dubai and after a few days’ stay there, a conduit took us to Iraq. There, a woman agent purchased us and further sold us to a contractor for 600 US dollars,” he said.
The exploitation does not end here. Those who want to return home have to go through the vicious circle again. Money is charged at every stage, he said.
Another youth Kamwaljit Singh of Khurlapur village near Mehatpur said: “ As Iraqi agents demand money for helping the youths to return home, most remain stranded there. Their families back home are unable to pay money for their release.”As the trapped youths belonged to poor families, there was “dim hope of any contractor letting them off,” he said.

UT orders probe into role of travel agents 

Chandigarh, August 11
The Chandigarh Police today ordered an inquiry into the role of three city travel agents- JM Overseas, Sector 41-D, Gayatry Travels, Sector 34-A and Continental Trade Test Centre- for dumping youths from Punjab and Haryana in Iraq on the false promise of employment. SSP Naunihal Singh today marked an inquiry to DSP (headquarters) Ashish Kapoor following Tribune reports.
“ The antecedents of all the three travel agencies operating in city will be verified. We will verify if they are registered with the Labour Ministry and if they are legally entitled to send skilled labour to foreign countries.,” the SSP said .
JM Overseas, has been operating from Sector 41 since 2005. Jay Prakash, director of agency, denied his company’s involvement in sending youths abroad fraudulently. He said it was a year ago that one of their clients was sent to Iraq and he was “ well-settled there.