An Indian teenager who remained stranded in Bahrain since 2006 is to be reunited with his father in India on Friday.

Due to lack of legal documents and identity papers, Raja Prasad, 18, was stranded in Bahrain in 2006 when his father Thani Prasad was deported back to India, Gulf Daily News reported.

Born out of wedlock to a Sri Lankan mother, who left his father when he was two years old, Raja did not have any legal documents or an official birth certificate, delaying his extradition from the country.

Raja's father, from Hardoi in Uttar Pradesh, lived in Bahrain for 16 years as a laundry worker. Surviving with help from the Migrant Workers Protection Society, Raja was able to continue his studies in Bahrain. "Different people at different points of time in all these years helped Raja by financially supporting him and looking after his well-being," said social worker Mehru Vesuvala.

He is now going home after receiving an outpass from the Indian Embassy. Indian Embassy officials said his plane ticket had been purchased with aid from the Indian Community Welfare Fund (ICWF). The ICWF was established by the ministry of overseas Indian affairs in 43 countries which have a large Indian population. It provides on-site welfare services.

– (IANS)