Two ships dispatched to bring back Indians stranded in Yemen

Mar 30, In Kerala, the state Minister of Non-Keralite Affairs and Information & Public Relations, K C Joseph today said that all steps have been taken to bring back Indians stranded in the strife-torn Yemen. Speaking to media persons in Kannur, the Minister said two ships have been dispatched to bring them back and accommodation facilities have been arranged at New Delhi and Mumbai for Keralites returning home. He termed the allegations that Indian Embassy officials demanded money to help those stranded as baseless. The Minister noted that about 3500 Indian nationals are held up in the strife-torn country, of which 70 per cent are from Kerala. He appealed to nurses to leave Yemen at the earliest, without waiting for settlement of their salaries. Two passenger ships started its sailing to Djibouti for evacuation of Indians from strife torn Yemen. The ships left this morning after getting instructions from Union Government to the Kochi Port Trust authorities. The passenger ships, MV Kavarati and MV Corals could evacuate a total of 1200 passengers. It is expected that the ships could reach Djibouti port within 5 to 7 days. Indian Navy will provide escort and security to the ships in the international waters. There is a 150 member crew in the ships, including doctors and nurses.