JOIN USThe Ministry of External Affairs has done well to provide food aid to some 10,000 Indian nationals stranded without jobs or money in Saudi Arabia. With their situation snowballing into a major humanitarian crisis, the MEA’s food aid and decision to evacuate them will come as a relief.
However, the government seems to have woken up to the crisis rather late in the day. It was evident several months ago that the fall in global oil prices and the consequent economic crisis in Saudi Arabia and other West Asian countries would hit foreign workers hard, particularly those employed in Saudi Arabia’s construction sector. These are by and large South Asians. As feared, construction companies stopped paying workers their salaries, prompting protests in the desert kingdom months ago. Yet, Delhi did not respond. It was only on July 29 when an Indian worker tweeted about the situation of Indians in Saudi Arabia and tagged External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, that Delhi woke up to the plight of its nationals there. It raises serious questions about the functioning of the Indian mission in Saudi Arabia. Aren’t our diplomats in touch with the Indian community there? Or is the plight of the poorer sections of the diaspora of no concern to them? Why did Indian diplomats posted in Saudi Arabia fail to keep the MEA in the loop?
Airlifting Indian workers back to the country, while being a logistical nightmare, will not be difficult for Delhi as it has experience in this, having evacuated thousands of people from conflict zones. However, their evacuation from Saudi Arabia will be challenging. Saudi rules require foreign workers to hand over their passports to employers and exit visas require no-objection certificates from the employers. But many employers have left the country now. Indian officials will have to negotiate with Saudi authorities to secure their exit visas and also unpaid salaries. Trouble is brewing for Indian workers in other West Asian countries too as in Kuwait, for instance. India must act pro-actively there.
While falling oil prices is the main reason behind the present forcing out of foreign workers from Saudi Arabia and other West Asian countries, rules for localisation of labour, such as the Saudis’ nitaqat law, for instance, have rendered uncertain their position for some time now. Rules for localising labour, which are aimed at tackling local unemployment, are forcing out Indian nurses from Oman, who have been told to leave in a month. Such rules will not only impact flow of remittances to India but also the livelihood security of Indians working there. As more Indians return home, they would need jobs. Is India preparing for the fallout?