While tightening norms for sending migrant workers abroad, the Government has set up an internet platform to verify recruiting agents and foreign employers to prevent cheating and trafficking of Indian workers.
It will now be mandatory for the blue-collar workers to apply for immigration through the ‘e-migrate’ website of the Ministry of External Affairs before going abroad for jobs. There are 89,993 foreign employers and around 1300 recruiting agents registered with the ‘e-migrate’.
Besides giving timely immigration clearance to workers travelling largely to Gulf countries for contractual jobs, the portal also provides them the safety net of insurance of Rs 10 lakh in case of any mishap.
According to M.C. luther, Protector General of Emigrants in MEA, the recruiting agents will now be held accountable in case any of the Indian worker send by them is in trouble on foreign soil and the onus will be on these agencies to rescue the person else it will attract penal action.
Most of the Indian workers travel to Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates in search of well paying blue-collared jobs. Interestingly, Kerala and Karnataka that once used to send highest number of migrant workers have now be overtaken by Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.