According to a news report an Indian businessman in Dubai has pledged to spend $1 million US dollars to help free prisoners from jail, including Indians. The prisoners are behind the bars in the UAE due to nonpayment debts.

Firoz Merchant, who is the founder and chairman of Pure Gold Jewelers, paid about 150,000 dirham’s for the release of 1302 prisoners from Ajman Centrals jail as his first step.

The funds will be used to help those people who are imprisoned behind the bars because of non-payment of debt and people who could not leave to their home country as they have no money.

These prisoners are from India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Philippines, Uzbekistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Ethiopia, Syria, Yemen, Oman and Ghana.

Firoz said that those people were unfortunate victims of circumstances and are not actually criminals. They all have ended up in prisons because of debt related cases and he wanted to do this best to send them back to their respective countries.

He said, 2016 was a challenging year as a lot of people working in the UAE could not pay their debt.

This is why Firoz decided to pay their debts off and get then flight tickets so that those prisoners can return back to their home.

Funds, which are made to be available will be against cheque bounce of up to AED 30,000 for rents, school fees, medical, car loan, etc," he said, adding that they are only considering applications forwarded by jail authorities across the UAE.

Beside flight tickets, his office is also providing 100 dirham’s equivalent to their local currency so that released inmates can reach their home safely.

"Most of these prisoners told us that once they land in their home countries, they will need public transport to reach their villages. It only made sense to give them some petty cash so that they manage the last leg of their journey," he said.

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