Seven Nepali migrant workers have been arrested on the charge of operating a local liquor factory in the Kuwaiti city of Salwa.

The workers, including four women, were arrested with 250 drums and 1, 500 bottles of locally manufactured liquor in the coastal city two weeks ago, according to security agencies. “The operator of the factory was also a Nepali citizen,” local media quoted police as saying.

A few days ago, three Nepali women were arrested on the charge of prostitution in Mahboula. Ahmadi Security Director Brigadier Abdullah Safah said that Nepali women had been operating a “prostitution ring” in the city. “We raided various places where many Nepali, Filipino and

Sri Lankan women were found involved in prostitution,” he said.

Assistant Coordinator for Non Resident Nepalis (NRN) in the Middle East Dharmaraj Giri agrees the number of Nepali women being charged of prostitution, drugs smuggling or trafficking liquor have risen in recent times.

Dil Bahadur Pun Magar of Baglung, who has been working at Kuwait for 22 years, said local agents had been using Nepali women in unlawful activities. “They cannot go away from those agents in the foreign land,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Nepali Embassy in Kuwait has urged Nepali nationals to abide by the local law. Nepali Ambassador to Kuwait Yagya Bahadur Hamal express concern over the growing number of cases involving Nepali women workers in the desert kingdom. According to the embassy, 34 Nepalis, including seven women, have recently been sentenced to prison after being convicted of various charges.