india

Updated: Jul 31, 2014 10:07 IST

As many as 58 Indian nurses in Libya have indicated that they would like to return home. There are 750 nurses among the 4,500 Indians in Libya. External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj chaired a high-level meeting on the Libyan situation on Wednesday and it was decided to send a joint secretary-level officer to facilitate the return of Indians from the strife-torn country.

Some companies in west Libya said they would send back 450 Indian employees at their own cost.

Swaraj asked for funds to be transferred from the Indian Community Welfare Fund from the UAE for use by Indians in difficult circumstances in Libya, external affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said.

The ministry has already issued an advisory asking Indians to leave Libya at the earliest and a decision was also taken to deploy six officials in Libya and Tunisia. “Tickets are being purchased for those Indian nationals who have evinced interest in returning to India. At this stage, we have confirmation of 58 nurses who would like to return to India,” he said.

The mission in Libya was working with others to ensure that all Indian nationals who want to return can be provided help.

“Options are being looked at for the move of Indian nationals in eastern part of Libya, that is Benghazi and the other side to return to India,” Akbaruddin said.

He hoped the first batch of Indian nationals would start returning before the weekend.