KULOB, September 15, 2011, Asia-Plus -- Chief specialist with the Migration Service under the Government of Tajikistan, Islom Rahmatulloyev, said on September 15 that the number of Tajik migrant workers who die in Russia is increasing.

According to him, the bodies of 602 Tajik citizens have been returned to Tajikistan from Russia over the first eight months of this year, which is three cases more than in the same period last year. “Sixty-eight Tajiks were killed by violence and 238 perished as a result of illness,” Rahmatulloyev said.

Over the report period, 452,983 people, including 52,128 women, have left the country seeking better employment opportunities, he added.