R K SINHA
Suddenly there are disturbing reports of the plight of Indian workers both skilled and unskilled working in foreign countries. They are living in conditions that appear to be appalling. Most of the these Indians are working in countries like Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Malaysia etc. Now reports are coming in from Azerbaijan, which was part of the Soviet Union. Indian workers are being treated as animals. There are hundreds of Indians who have fallen sick and they want to return to India. Mostly the workers are from Bihar’s Chapra, Siwan, Gopalganj, and from Gajipur, Balia, Varanasi and Mirzapur in eastern Uttar Pradesh and from Kerala.
Some family members of these migrant workers informed me that ‘agents’ offered lucrative remuneration for the job but once they reached there, they were forced to live in barracks with poor conditions. They are being treated as prisoners. The workers have no free movement; they are not allowed to go out. The condition of these workers came to light when a labourer managed to send a video to his family in Gopalganj. The Indians were taken to Azerbaijan by an agent of Gorakhpur in May last year.
Mission Yemen
Last year it was at the initiative of Prime Minister Narendra Modi that hundreds of Indians were rescued from disturbed Yemen. The Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force were deployed in the mission under the supervision of V. K Singh, Minister of State in the government and active role played by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. A similar urgency should be shown and prompt action be taken by the Indian Government to rescue the people from Azerbaijan.
Some improvement in the working conditions of Indians in the UAE is reported after our Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited that country last year and held discussions with the highest authorities of the UAE on the plight of Indian workers there. But a constant watch is needed and the government should try to remain in touch with that country on the plight of the Indian workers there on a regular basis.
As you arrive at the airport in Riyadh, Abu Dhabi or Dubai you see Indians all around. The Indians are taken to work in these countries but there is no minimum wage, health care and insurance for them.
During the UPA Government headed by Manmohan Singh, questions were raised in Parliament over the plight of Indians working in the Gulf nations. Just look what E Ahmed, a Minister in the government then told the House:
“According to estimates, approximately six million Indians are working in the Gulf countries. The government receives complaint from them time to time. The Government of India through its missions in the Gulf has tried to resolve issues related to exploitation and sufferings of the Indian migrant force.” It is a brief version of the minister’s reply in Parliament but one can imagine the casual approach of the then UPA Government on the plight of Indian workers in the Gulf.
It is unfortunate that India receives huge remittances in foreign exchange running into millions from Indian migrant workers in foreign countries, but the government appears to be insensitive to their plight. Indian migrant workers remitted 70 million in Riyal, Dirham and other currencies of the Gulf. China was next with 64 million Gulf currencies followed by Philippine with 26 million remittance in 2014.
In the meantime, there are reports from Qatar where Indians are being treated as bonded labourers. Hundreds of Indian migrants are working their in massive construction work in Qatar which is going to host Olympics in the year 2022. World bodies like International Human Rights Commission and Amnesty International have prepared a report in the backdrop of the world event in Qatar in which it has mentioned deaths of some Indian migrant workers. Based on information from Indian Government, the report says that 289 Indian migrant workers died in Qatar. The laws of Qatar related to labour and minimums wages are not followed in case of the Indian workers. The contractors have a free run to exploit the Indian workforce.
The government has to be pro-active in defending the human rights of migrant Indian workers particularly in the Gulf nations. Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his just concluded visit to Saudi Arabia met the Indian migrant workers and shared a meal with them. This is high time that government agencies in Delhi should wake up and take urgent and sutained measures to ameliorate the sufferings of the Indian abroad.
