India urges Gulf nations to facilitate return of Indian workers willing to resume work
New Delhi: India on Tuesday urged the Gulf countries to facilitate the return of Indian workers and professionals who are now eager to resume their work following the easing of coronavirus-related restrictions.
The issue figured at a virtual meeting External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar held with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), a leading regional organization comprising almost all Arab countries.
In the meeting, Jaishankar assured the Gulf nations on continuing the supply of food, medicines, and essential items from India.
The Ministry of External Affairs said Jaishankar thanked the GCC countries for taking care of the large Indian diaspora during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"The External Affairs Minister mentioned that a large number of Indian workers and professionals are now eager to return to the GCC countries to resume their work.
"He urged the GCC leadership to facilitate their return through sustainable travel bubble arrangements with India," the MEA said.
Thousands of Indians had returned home from the Gulf region in the last few months following the coronavirus pandemic.
The MEA said the leaders also exchanged views on regional and international issues of mutual concern.
While the Indian delegation was led by Jaishankar, the GCC was represented by Secretary-General of GCC Nayef Falah M Al-Hajraf, Foreign Minister of Bahrain Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani and Foreign Minister of UAE Anwar bin Mohammed Gargash.
Senior representatives from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Qatar also participated in the meeting.
"They agreed that the India-GCC partnership in political, economic, and other domains would be further strengthened. The GCC welcomed India's inclusion in the UNSC as a non-permanent member from January 2021," the MEA said.
"Both sides affirmed their commitment to reform multilateral institutions to reflect the realities of the 21st century and to work together to address contemporary challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, sustainable development, and terrorism," it added.
In a series of tweets, Jaishankar said that continuing the flow of food, medicines and essential items were assured to the Gulf region.
The MEA said Jaishankar also apprised the GCC leaders about the progress made by India in vaccine development as well as in the development and manufacturing of diagnostic and other equipment related to COVID-19.
"Both sides reaffirmed that they will continue to work together to tackle COVID-19 situation," it said.
Jaishankar also apprised the GCC leaders of the improving situation in India, both on the health and the economic side.
He hoped for an early return to trade normalcy between India and the GCC.
India had ensured that the supply chains from India to the Gulf were not disrupted despite the lockdowns during the pandemic.
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Pakistan reports two more polio cases; Total tally now 52
ISLAMABAD: At least two more cases of poliovirus were reported in Pakistan, taking the number of infections to 52 so far this year, a report said on Friday.
“The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health has confirmed the detection of two more wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) cases in Pakistan," an official statement said.
The fresh infections — a boy and a girl — were reported from the Dera Ismail Khan district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province.
“Genetic sequencing of the samples collected from the children is underway," the statement read. Dera Ismail Khan, one of the seven polio-endemic districts of southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, has reported five polio cases so far this year.
Of the 52 cases in the country this year, 24 are from Balochistan, 13 from Sindh, 13 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and one each from Punjab and Islamabad.
There is no cure for polio. Only multiple doses of the oral polio vaccine and completion of the routine vaccination schedule for all children under the age of five can keep them protected.
