NEW DELHI: All Indian nations safe in the Gulf region and that there were no reports of any Indian casualty in Baghdad an external affairs ministry spokesman said on Jan 18.
He told newsmen that New Delhi established contacts on Friday with its embassies in Baghdad Doha Riyadh Dubai and the reports received from there said all Indians are safe
There are about 500,000 Indian nationals in the Gulf war Zone.
The spokesman also described as not at all accurate a newspaper report on Friday that about one lakh Indians in the oil region of eastern Saudi Arabia had been caught in the war
He said the external affairs ministry was in touch with the local governments there The Saudi government is said have decided to relocate civilians in safer places
This relocation plan was yet to be put into action he added.
The spokesman said information received from there said the implementation of the plan depended upon the intensity of the war in eastern Saudi Arabia.
There were about two to three lakh Indian nationals working besides several other foreign nationals
He also said the passport rules would not act as an impediment for the movement of Indian nationals within that country as part of the relocation plan. The passport rules also applied uniformly to all foreign workers he added.
Article extracted from this publication >> January 25, 1991
