Bhubaneswar: The air at the airport today was thick with a mix of exhaustion and overwhelming relief as four Odia youths finally stepped onto their home soil, ending a harrowing chapter of their lives. For Jayanta Kumar Mallick, Hemanta Kumar Behera, Manaranjan Sahu, and Bijay Kumar Swain, the sight of the Odisha sky was a dream they feared might never come true while they were stranded thousands of miles away in Thailand.
What began in August 2025 as a journey of hope and a quest to provide better lives for their families in Kendrapara and Bhadrak quickly spiraled into a nightmare. Promised stable work in a plywood company, these young men instead found themselves trapped in a foreign land without wages, struggling for basic survival, and facing hardships that no worker should ever endure. The desperation in their voices was palpable weeks ago when they took to social media, their last line of defense, pleading for the state to bring them home.
Their return is the culmination of an intense, cross-border rescue mission. The silent prayers of their mothers and wives were answered through the synchronized efforts of the Ministry of External Affairs and various wings of the Odisha Government. From the backstreets of Thailand to the Residence Commissioner in New Delhi and the District Collectors of Bhadrak and Kendrapada, a lifeline was extended to ensure these sons of the soil were not forgotten.
As they walked through the gates today, the fatigue on their faces was momentarily masked by tears of joy. While two of their companions still remain, the safe return of these four serves as a testament to the power of a government that listens to its people, even when they are half a world away. With folded hands and trembling voices, the returnees expressed their deepest gratitude, knowing that tonight, for the first time in months, they will finally sleep without fear, surrounded by the warmth of their loved ones.