P. Lesima Jerose Monisha, 25, the nurse who was back home in Tuticorin on Saturday night after 23 days of captivity in Tikrit and Mosul in the strife-torn Iraq, has appealed to the State government to waive her educational loan and sought a government job for her livelihood. She was one of the 46 nurses stranded in a teaching hospital in Tikrit since June 12.
Scenes of joy marked her re-union with family at 10.50 p.m. Her mother P. Edvijammal, 65, along with her elder sister Raisa, 28, burst into tears of joy and embraced Ms. Monisha. The neighbours offered sweets to the family.
The nurse said the Kerala government had assured the freed nurses of that State of education loan waiver, government jobs and relief assistance. The Tamil Nadu government could follow suit, she said.
“My family is deep in debt since I took an educational loan of Rs.2 lakh and pursued a course in nursing. Besides, a sizeable amount was paid to the recruiting agency. To settle the loan with interest and other expenses amounting to Rs.6 lakh now, I took up the job in Iraq in February this year. It is my bad luck that salaries were not paid even after four months of work. The Iraqi government refused to offer salary, citing the conduct of elections and the subsequent impact on the budget,” the fatherless woman said.
