Libya: 26 Tamil Nadu youths detained

The relatives said the kin of one of them, Duraiswamy, received information from Tripoli that all 26 have been detained in a room after they refused to work for a 8220;paltry salary8221;.

They were also not given proper food, the relatives said in the memorandum.

The youths, who had left for Tripoli five months back, had been offered salaries equivalent to around Rs 25,000 for different jobs in the company, they said.

A recruitment agent called Ganesan of Vannaparaipatti, near Melur, had made all arrangements for their travel and job and had received Rs 85,000 each from them, they said. But they were given only a monthly salary equivalent to Rs 8,000 and were asked to work for 20 hours, the relatives said.

Duraisamy somehow managed to pass the information to his relatives on Tuesday, following which the kin of the 13 persons from Melur sent a memorandum seeking steps to secure their release to the Centre and Tamil Nadu Government. A copy of it was also submitted to the district administration.