Nepal, June 8 -- When the Kuwaiti government announced a general amnesty for all undocumented workers, Khem Pariyar was relieved. Pariyar turned illegal two years ago when the company he was working for collapsed. Like most, he could've come back home and reapplied with another company but he decided to remain behind in Kuwait.

"I become undocumented as I had loans to clear," 26-year-old Pariyar told the Post over WhatsApp. "Although I was earning good money, I'm now happy to return home under the amnesty provision because no one knows when the situation could get worse with rising cases of Covid-19."

Under the general amnesty, he wouldn't face any financial penalties or blacklisting and would even get a free ride back home.

Hundreds o...