NEW DELHI: Forty Nepali women, about to be sent as domestic workers to Gulf countries via Delhi, were rescued by the Nepali Embassy and Indian police from hotels in Mahipalpur. They were sent back to Nepal by land on Thursday.

Despite Nepal’s ban on sending women to the Gulf for domestic work due to exploitation risks, traffickers lure them with promises of high pay and use Indian airports to bypass restrictions.

Of 63 women rescued from Mahipalpur hotels, 23 with valid documents for Europe were released.

The remaining 40 were headed to Kuwait, Oman, Dubai, and Saudi Arabia.They came from 24 districts across Nepal.