KATHMANDU: Thirty-six more Nepalis who were stranded in Afghanistan have been rescued and brought back home on Saturday. Similarly, some others rescued are scheduled to land in Kathmandu on Saturday night.

So far, 558 abandoned Nepalis have been rescued and safely repatriated to home since Afghanistan was recently taken under control by Taliban. Other 317 have registered themselves for a rescue, said the Ministry of Home Affairs.

The rescued Nepalis boarded regular and chartered flights to arrive in Nepal.

Arrangements have been made for the rescued Nepalis to reach them home after their COVID-19 tests and other health checkups at a holding center in Kathmandu in coordination with the Ministry, it has been said.

There are two holding centers- at Samakhusi and Ichangunarayan- set up for the rescued Nepalis by the Nepali Army.

The government in coordination with the Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has formed a taskforce to rescue the stranded Nepalis from Afghanistan. Members of the taskforce are Chief of the Central Asia, West Asia and Africa Division and first class gazetted officers from the Ministries of Finance, Home Affairs, Labour and Employment, Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation and Health and Population, Nepal Police, the COVID-19 Crisis Management Centre and the Department of Consular Services.

The rescue operation has taken place on the basis of the registration of the stranded Nepalis in the web portal and their details given by the Nepali Embassy in New Delhi and the situation center. Similarly, one can contact at mobile numbers 9749326458 and 9749326459 through Viber and WhatsApp for rescue.

Friendly nations have helped in the rescue of the stranded Nepalis by sending their flights to Kabul.

The government has formally written to the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, European Union, Japan and the United Nations to help rescue the stranded Nepalis from Afghanistan and bring them back to home at the earliest.