Gulf returnee forced to work as camel herder still grappling with trauma from ‘torture’

Namdev Rathod, the Gulf returnee, (third from left) along with his family members and close relatives upon his arrival at his native Ruvvi village in Telangana’s Nirmal district on Wednesday morning.
| Photo Credit: By Arrangement

Namdev Rathod, who was stranded in a camel shed in Saudi Arabia’s desert for the past couple of months, is back home in Ruvvi village in Telangana’s Nirmal district but still grappling with the trauma of being ‘tortured’ by his Kuwait-based employer, who ‘forced’ him to work as a camel herder in Saudi Arabia amid harsh conditions.

A selfie video shared by him with his wife Laxmi highlighting his agony in the desert in August this year paved the way for his safe return to the village following joint efforts by the Indian embassies in Kuwait and Riyadh, Telangana Chief Ministers Office (CMO) and social workers based in Saudi Arabia.

Hailing from a poor family of Lambada tribal community, Namdev had gone to Kuwait to take up housekeeper’s job as promised by the local Gulf agent in search of greener pastures at the fag end of 2023. But he ended up as a camel herder in Saudi Arabia as his Kuwait-based employer allegedly deputed him to work in his camel shed in Saudi Arabia. Namdev returned home safely with his hopes of carving out a bright future for his family shattered.

The owner of the camel shed and his son used to treat me worse than the camels, rues Namdev recollecting the harrowing experience of working in Saudi Arabia’s desert, near Khafji town about 130 km from Kuwait.

“I was entrusted with the arduous task of taking care of around 40 camels at the shed under a scorching sun braving dust storms in the desert,” he said while recounting the agonising moments.

“When I fell sick I sought medical aid but the father-son duo deprived me of any help and made me languish in the extreme temperatures in the green tent (shed),” the 51-year-old Gulf returnee adds.

Elated over the happy reunion with his father after several months of agonizing wait, Namdev’s son Srikanth, a M.A. (Hindi) II year student, says “Our family is indebted to the Indian embassy in Kuwait and Telangana Chief Minister’s Office for their sustained efforts in bringing my father back home.

“We earnestly request the government to help my husband under the rehabilitation scheme for the Gulf returnees,” Laxmi, wife of Namdev said.