Kuwait: The Indian Embassy in Kuwait has launched a registration drive to help stranded Indian nationals who want to return to Kuwait and have not been able to do so due to the COVID-19 restrictions imposed in the country.
According to the embassy, applicants are those who have settled in India during their stay, have lost their jobs due to non-return, have household goods in Kuwait, and have family members in Kuwait, who wish to rejoin their duties, those who have not received salary dues / compensation and so on.
The registration drive has been set up only to estimate how many Indians want to return to Kuwait. The embassy indicated that once the information was gathered, it would contact the relevant authorities in Kuwait to resolve the issue, Gulf News reported.
Applicants can apply through the link provided by the embassy.
Thousands of Indians have not been able to return to Kuwait for over a year due to travel restrictions on COVID-19.
Kuwait first closed its airports on March 13, 2020 and did not reopen until August 1. The government has announced that travelers to 31 “high-risk” countries have been barred from traveling directly to Kuwait. India was one country on this list.
Then on December 21, Kuwait closed its airport, including its land and sea borders, amid growing concerns about new COVID tensions in Britain and Europe. Two weeks later, the airport reopened but a quota was imposed stating that no more than 1,000 passengers a day could reach Kuwait. Many passengers are aware that their flights have been canceled or delayed.
So far, non-Kuwaitis have been barred from entering Kuwait since February 7 until further notice.