The first group of 64 workers, who were recruited over the past few months during a massive drive in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, has flown to Israel under the government-to-government (G2G) arrangement. Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) official spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that the Indian government has urged the Israeli authorities to take their safety seriously.

“The first batch of people under the G2G agreement have gone to Israel,” Jaiswal told reporters.

He added that they have urged the Israeli authorities to take care of their well-being. “For us, their safety is very important. We have urged the Israeli authorities to do their best to take care of their safety and well-being which is of prime importance,” he said.

The first batch of 64 workers have been hired as part of the recruitment drive held at the Maharshi Dayanand University in Haryana’s Rohtak earlier this year. The plan is to recruit over 10,000-strong workforce, as per the Israeli government’s requirement.

The workers were hired to replace the Palestinian labour force whose work permits were revoked after the start of the war last October. Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi last December to “advance the arrival” of workers from India.

Last Tuesday, Israeli ambassador Naor Gilon took to X to announce the event organised on Tuesday for the first batch of Indian workers going to Israel. Gilon was seen with National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) CEO Ved Mani Tiwari.

“Today we had a farewell event from the first batch of 60+ Indian construction workers going to Israel under the G2G agreement. This is an outcome of the hard work of many, including @NSDCINDIA. I’m sure that the workers become ‘ambassadors’ of the great P2P relations between [India and Israel],” Gilon posted.

According to the MEA, around 18,000 Indian workers, including caregivers and professionals, in Israel. “The Indian Embassy in Israel is constantly in touch with them for their safety and it is a major concern for us,” he said.

Last month, a Kerala man working on a plantation in Israel was killed and two other Indian citizens were injured in a Hamas missile strike. Following this, India issued an advisory for its nationals living in the border areas of Israel to relocate to safer areas within the country due to prevailing situations.

“In view of the prevailing security situation and local safety advisories, all Indian nationals in Israel, especially those working in or visiting border areas in the north and south, are advised to relocate to safe areas within Israel. The Embassy remains in touch with the Israeli authorities to ensure the safety of all our nationals,” the Indian Embassy in Israel said in an official statement.