549 Indians trapped in cyber-scam centres on Myanmar-Thailand border repatriated

Five hundred and forty-nine Indian citizens who were forced to work at cyber-scam call centres on the Myanmar-Thailand border were repatriated on Monday and Tuesday on board Indian Air Force aircraft.

The first flight with 283 citizens arrived from Mae Sot in Thailand on Monday, the Ministry of External Affairs said. The second group with 266 citizens arrived in Delhi on Tuesday.

“The Government of India has been making sustained efforts to secure the release and repatriation of Indian nationals lured to various Southeast Asian countries, including Myanmar, with fake job offers,” the ministry said on Monday.

A third flight is expected to repatriate more Indians on Wednesday, The Hindu reported.

New Delhi has warned its citizens against such scams, advising them to “verify credentials of foreign employers through [diplomatic] missions abroad and check the antecedents of recruiting agents and companies before taking up a job offer”.

In February, several persons, including Indians, who were trapped in such centres were rescued following a crackdown on such establishments by Thai authorities.

Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said on February 19 that about 7,000 persons had been rescued from illegal call centres in Myanmar and were waiting to be brought across the border to Thailand.

Thailand began acting against the centres after a 22-year-old Chinese actor was abducted after being scammed through a call. The actor was...

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