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Five J’khand migrant labourers held captive in Niger rescued, set to return home
Five abducted migrant workers from Giridih, India, have been safely released in Niger after eight months and are set to return home soon.
Five migrant workers from Giridih district who were missing allegedly after being abducted in Niger, Africa from a power project site around eight months ago, have been released safely and are set to return home soon, people aware of the development said on Saturday.
The government said representatives from the State Migrant Control Room had spoken to the rescued workers over the phone and were aware of their current situation. “After completing medical examinations and other necessary formalities, the process of sending the workers back to Jharkhand by air will be initiated,” an official said.
The five migrant workers from villages Dondlo and Mundro under Bagodar police station in Giridih district were working in Niger on a project of Kalpataru Transmission Line Company. The labourers were identified as Faljit Mahato, Raju Kumar, Chandrika Mahato, Sanjay Mahato and Uttam Mahato,
Giridih deputy commissioner Ramniwas Yadav told reporters that it was the combined effort of CM Hemant Soren, state migrant control room and the ministry of external affairs that the five migrants being held captive could come back safely to India.
“We received information from the company officials that the labourers, after eight months in captivity, were released and have returned to Mumbai by flight on Friday,” he said.
The officials said while the officials concerned had been making all efforts through the Centre to rescue the workers, soon after the CM was informed about the incident on April 25, 2025, different departments of the state government were also providing help to their family back home through the welfare schemes, besides ensuring that their employer was paying a financial assistance of ₹17,000 to family members of those missing.
According to the information received, the workers were working in Telabari area, approximately 25-30 kilometres from the company site. This incident was entirely related to a military operation, in which total 26 local citizens and 12 workers from other countries were taken hostage. In this matter, the company management, the local governor’s office, the Indian Embassy were actively coordinating, officials said.
Following the CM’s orders, the Giridih administration provided the dependents of the workers with various departmental social security schemes, including labour cards, Ayushman cards, ration cards, Animal Husbandry Scheme, Housing Scheme, Ujjwala Scheme, MNREGA Job Cards, Swachh Bharat Mission toilets, Pension Scheme, piped water connections, e-Shram registration, Birsa Harit Gram Yojana, JSPL scheme, and Maiyan Samman Yojana, officials added.
