For several days he remained in the midst of agony in Basra amid hunger, thirst and dread. Ear shattering explosions, rattling sounds of machineguns and screams of men, women and children became his reality till he managed to come out of those killer fields. He was expecting death as he hopelessly watched the houses being burnt by warring factions.

Samad Mandal had deserted optimism of being with his family ever again till he managed to contact the Indian embassy. "A few days back, I called up the Embassy and asked for help. They got in touch with my family and the company I was working for in Iraq. I still can't believe I am home," Mandal lamented. It was a nightmare for him and 24 others who could make it to India on Tuesday.

Ironically, their dreams to have decent lives for their families were smithereens into tatters. Post, paying a fat amount to agencies to get a decent work and fat pay in Iraq, they ended up as construction workers who received more whips than meals. "The best meal in the last six months was a chapati and a bowl of dal. We had forgotten how drinkable water tasted. We had to boil salted water and fetched from a tap around a mile away to make it germ-free," said Sohail Sheikh.

Sohail left his home in Nadia for Iraq around two years ago. "We had to depend on the company to buy ration for us," he said. "Since the first day we were warned against any complaint. A complaint lodged with supervisors was returned with dire consequences, some were beaten up till they fainted, others had to face a gun pointed at their head and shot," he said.

"We empathized with the Iraqis. They were even more ill treated. Men and women starved for days," Ramen Biswas said. "They would often come down to our squatters to beg for a meal. But they had guns; even the kids played with automatic rifles," he said with a dry smile.