The Indian embassy in Laos on Saturday reported that at least 47 Indians who were trapped in cyber scam centres in the Bokeo province have been rescued.
Indian authorities have issued warnings to its citizens about fraudulent employment offers in Laos and have urged them to do extensive research in order to prevent these scams.
635 Indians have been rescued from the country and safely returned to India by the Indian mission so far.
According to a statement from the Indian Embassy in Laos, the latest case noted the embassy rescuing 47 Indians who were held in cyber scam centres within the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Bokeo province.
“Of these, 29 were handed over to the Embassy by Laos authorities after their crackdown on illegal activities in Golden Triangle SEZ, while other 18 had approached the Embassy in distress, seeking help,” the statement read.
It stated that in order to coordinate with local authorities for their rescue, embassy representatives flew to Bokeo from the capital city of Vientiane.
According to the statement, Prashant Agrawal, the Indian ambassador to Laos, met with the group when they arrived to discuss the difficulties they were having and to offer assistance on how to go forward.
The statement added that 30 of them have already safely returned to India or are on their way and the remaining 17 have been waiting for their travel plans to be finalised and will be departing the country soon. The embassy has taken on and completed all procedural requirements of Laos authorities for their repatriation to India.
Agrawal underscored that the Embassy’s main priority is ‘ensuring safety and well-being’ for Indian nationals.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar last month addressed the issue of trafficking of Indian nationals with Laos Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone during his visit to the Southeast Asian nation.
Last month, the Indian embassy in Laos sent 13 Indians back home after saving them from being tricked into various cyber-scamming networks in the country.
The Indian Embassy called on the Laos government to take internal measures against fraudulent people.
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