Their plight was first reported in Khaleej Times.
Indian expat Poonam Singh, who is now 35 weeks pregnant, and her husband Anoop have been allotted seats on a repatriation flight to New Delhi from Dubai. They will finally be flying home this Wednesday.
They hail from a village in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, where solemnisation and marriage certification are done by the village council. However, the marriage certificate with the seal of a village head is not valid in the UAE. This meant Poonam had to leave in the next available flight. Khaleej Times reported their plight in the Sunday edition.
Following the report, a Dubai-based social worker swung into action, took up the matter with the Consulate-General of India, and managed to get the couple listed among the priority cases.
“I was tensed as I was in the 35th week of pregnancy and had to leave before it was too late. We are glad to have made it to the priority list. We have booked our Air India tickets for the Wednesday flight. I thank the media report for helping us out in this critical time,” Poonam said.
Anoop appreciated the support offered by social worker Girish Pant and the officials at the consulate-general. “We are very happy with the continuous assistance we are receiving from missions and social workers. Those in distress need such comfort,” Anoop said.
