4,355 Indians died in 88 countries due to Covid-19, highest in Saudi Arabia
A total of 1,237 deaths were recorded due to Covid-19 in Saudi Arabia, while 894 were reported in the UAE. More than six million Indians live here.
A total of 4,355 Indians died due to Covid-19 in 88 countries around the world, with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) recording the highest number of deaths. This information was given by the Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday.
He told that a total of 127 bodies were brought back to India for the last rites. A total of 1,237 deaths were recorded due to Covid-19 in Saudi Arabia, while 894 were reported in the United Arab Emirates. More than six million Indians live in these two West Asian countries.
According to the information given by the minister, a large number of deaths have occurred in some other countries including 203 in Bahrain, 668 in Kuwait, 186 in Malaysia, 555 in Oman and 113 in Qatar.
Muraleedharan said that whenever such requests were received by foreign missions of India, financial assistance was provided from the Indian Community Welfare Fund for transporting bodies to India or for local burials. He said that there is no restriction on bringing back the bodies of Indians who died of Covid-19, provided necessary precautions are taken by the Ministries of Health and Civil Aviation.
How many Indians returned from abroad
In a written reply to another question in the Rajya Sabha, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said 716,662 Indians had returned from six West Asian countries on special flights amid the pandemic. Of these, 330,058 were from UAE, 137,900 from Saudi Arabia, 97,802 from Kuwait, 72,259 from Oman, 51,190 from Qatar and 27,453 from Bahrain.
Jaishankar said, "While a large number of Indian workers in the Gulf returned to India as a result of the impact of Covid-19, the economic recovery in that region and their increasing openness to travel from India have now led many of them to return."
The government launched a program in January 2021 for Indian blue collar workers in the UAE to increase their employability and wages. Jaishankar said that as the pandemic eased in recent months, there has been an emphasis on the speedy return of workers and families.