Officials of Nepal Airlines at Tribhuvan International Airport intercepted the progress of 11 persons including 10 women to the Gulf.

According to a source, they were trying to board a national flag carrier flight when the authorities briefly detained them yesterday at around 6:30 pm before their release.

They were in possession of tourist visa.

Sushil Basnet, an official of Nepal Airlines, informed that they were not allowed to board the flight after they failed to show at least USD 500, which is mandatory for a passenger flying to the Gulf on tourist visa.

The source said they were in possession of the amount as we checked in the counter, but failed to show it after securing the boarding pass.

“Mystery has shrouded the circumstances of the disappearance of the money within a matter of minutes,” the source informed.

Earlier, immigration officials were found to have teamed up with outsourcing agencies that traffic Nepali women to the Gulf countries for easy monetary gains. Keshav Pudasaini, immigration officer at the only international airport in Nepal, said he was unaware of the entire episode.

Published on: 11 April 2012 | The Himalayan Times