Blanket ban on foreign employment via India

KATHMANDU, JAN 26 -
In a bid to curb the use of Indian routes for foreign employment, the Foreign Ministry has decided to write to the Government of India not to permit Nepalis to use Indian routes to go to Gulf countries, Lebanon and Malaysia for jobs. 
Nepali missions based in Gulf countries had complained that many Nepalis who reached there for blue collar jobs found themselves in trouble as they did not have prior approval of the government.


Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sujata Koirala decided to this effect on Monday. The ministry will be writing to the New Delhi mission on Tuesday asking Indian authorities to take strict measures against Nepalis who want to go to third countries with ordinary passports.

“Those who use Indian airports to go abroad for jobs are taking illegal channels and measures. Persons who travel via India with ordinary passports to seek employment in a third country are illegal  migrants and the means they use are not compatible with Nepali domestic labour laws. So, we have asked Indian authorities to check these Nepalis and send them back to Nepal,” the decision reads.

Most Nepali women have been using New Delhi and Mumbai airports to fly to their labour destinations in violation of local rules. Those who used Indian routes and did not take approval from the Labour Ministry, reached their destinations through individual brokers without adequate documents from recipient countries.

According to the Foreign Employment Act, 2008, those who want to go for foreign employment should use Nepal’s airport and take permission from the government.

“We should take immediate measures to control the flow of Nepali domestic workers via Indian airports—specifically women from different parts of Nepal—to the Gulf. Rather, they should fly only from Nepal and with government permission,” said Nepal’s envoy to Kuwait Madhuban Poudel.

The recent measures will apply both to men and women, said Arjun Panta, under secretary at the ministry.

As most  workers, mainly women who come as housemaids, have come here in an unorganised way out of ignorance or in an adventure-like situation,  they have mostly landed in trouble for some reason or the other, said Poudel.

source: ekantipur.com