Campaign warns Punjabis against immigration, marriage frauds

Chandigarh/Jalandhar, Nov 15 (IANS) In Punjab, where the ambition of nearly half the population is to go abroad, the government has started an advertisement campaign warning against immigration, marriage and job frauds being carried out by unscrupulous travel agents.

The Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA) is running the campaign through Punjabi channels and vernacular newspapers and asking young Punjabi men and women to guard against false travel and immigration agents and also NRIs wanting to dupe them by offering foreign dreams.

"Supne dekhne chhado, haqiqat val dhiyaan deyo (Stop dreaming and look at reality)" is the punch line of the ad campaign launched by the ministry last month to make people aware about immigration frauds.

These frauds include illegal immigration, the absence of a work permit, not having employment visas, marriage frauds and 'holiday marriages'. The last of these are sham marriages entered into by NRIs with young women from Punjab with the promise of taking them abroad later.

Holiday marriages are also entered into by NRIs coming to Punjab on a holiday and getting married to local girls without telling them of their earlier marital status.

This is said to be the first such sustained ad campaign against immigration frauds.

"It is a well-oiled immigration industry in Punjab where people are losing billions of rupees annually by falling into the trap of fraud travel agents. These agents take advantage of loopholes in the law and no strict penal action on them," points out former central minister Balwant Singh Ramoowalia.

His Lok Bhalai Party (LBP) has been running a campaign against unscrupulous travel agents and for helping duped youth in the state in the last one decade.

Facts on Punjab's illegal immigration industry compiled by the LBP speak for themselves:

Over 500 unscrupulous travel agents have cheated youth of over Rs.20 billion in the last one decade. Complaints worth Rs.2.5 billion, involving nearly 50,000 duped families, are already pending with the LBP.

There are over 15,000 Punjab youth languishing in the prisons of various countries after being duped and dumped by travel agents. Only a few hundred have returned home in the last couple of years to tell their tale of woe.

Nearly 1,500 youth are languishing in inhuman conditions in the Kiev prison in Ukraine alone.

Even VIPs, from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Babubhai Katara to singers Daler Mehndi and Dolly Malkit, have been accused of illegal human trafficking of youth from Punjab.

Over 1,500 youth have already been killed or are missing after being sent abroad, especially to Iraq and some Middle East countries.

Nearly 15,000 abandoned brides are waiting in their homes across Punjab for their NRI husbands to take them abroad. In some cases, the wait has been over 10 years.

The Punjab government recently posted an additional director general of police (ADGP) rank officer to probe immigration and NRI marriage fraud cases. Not much outcome has come from it even as travel agents continue to dupe youth.

"We will not allow travel agents and others to have a free run. We are bringing a law in the state assembly shortly to bring these agents under the ambit of stricter laws," Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had said recently.

But this talk is of little solace to many.

The family of Baljinder Kaur, who is in her mid 20s and hails from Badni Kalan village Moga district, is regretting not only marrying her to a NRI from Italy but also paying him a dowry of Rs.1.5 million. The case is being probed by the Punjab Police.

A couple of years ago, Punjab Police mooted a rule to register rape cases against NRI grooms indulging in sham and holiday marriages. But no such case has been registered so far despite the rising number of frauds being committed on young women.

"There are several black sheep among travel and immigration agents. Their activities bring a bad name to the whole industry. They are looting millions of rupees from unsuspecting youth," pointed out Jalandhar-based immigration agent Onkar Singh.

"Gandhigiri' pays off - Even in US

Washington, July 18 (IANS) A bit of "Gandhigiri" by unhappy Indian green card seekers paid off with the US immigration service reversing itself again to begin immediately accepting applications from thousands of foreign professional workers.

The latest flip-flop followed a unique protest by Indian applicants for permanent residency who sent thousands of flowers to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Emilio Gonzalez last week over a last minute reversal of a June announcement offering expedited processing for H1-B visa holders.

"The public reaction to the July 2 announcement made it clear that the federal government's management of this process needs further review," Gonzalez stated Tuesday acknowledging the Indian workers' protest inspired by the hit Hindi movie "Lage Raho Munnabhai" that extolled Gandhian ways of non-violent protest.

"I am committed to working with Congress and the State Department to implement a more efficient system in line with public expectations," he added.

After the June announcement thousands of holders of H1-B visas-reserved for skilled workers in computing, engineering and other special professions-scrambled and spent money on lawyers and medical exams to prepare green card applications for a July 1 deadline.

However, US State Department announced July 2 that no applications would be accepted until October because of a large visa backlog. The abrupt change sent them back to the queue for 2008.

The USCIS announcement Tuesday allows anyone who was eligible to apply under the June announcement to do so by Aug 17. Applications already properly filed with USCIS will also be accepted, it said.

- Arun Kumar IANS

Indian consulate gives away 700 emergency certificates

Dubai, July 2 (IANS) The Indian mission in Dubai issued nearly 700 emergency certificates to illegal Indian workers to return home as hundreds of them thronged the Indian High School here.

Due to the heavy rush of Indian workers Sunday, the Indian consulate has decided to open a centre in Sharjah in the next two days for issuing certificates.

Last month, the United Arab emirates (UAE) government had set a deadline of three months for all illegal foreign workers to either get legal status to stay in the country or face deportation.

As of last week, close to 5,500 applications was received by the Indian mission here.

"We distributed about 700 out passes yesterday. We are starting a new centre at the Indian Association in Sharjah within two days. So people from Northern Emirate can go to the Sharjah centre to collect the certificates," Indian consulate spokesperson B.S. Mubarak said.

The Indian community is responding positively by helping the mission in processing amnesty-seekers' papers, he added.

There are around 1.4 million expatriate Indians in Dubai, many of them contract workers.

Meanwhile, some amnesty-seekers complained of delays in the processing of emergency certificates saying that they had to wait for hours just to submit their applications, the Khaleej times reported.

"I came here at 8 a.m. and I had to wait until 12.30 p.m. just to submit my application. Now I have to wait for another 15 days for the certificate," said Murugan. - IANS

Over 8,700 Indian expatriates apply for emergency papers in Dubai

Dubai, June 27 (IANS) Taking advantage of a new amnesty scheme launched by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) government for illegal foreign workers, 8,793 expatriate Indians have filed applications for emergency certificates at the Indian mission here.

Over 5,000 applications have been received from Sharjah and over 3,000 from Dubai itself, according to a press statement issued Wednesday by the Indian consulate general.

Earlier this month, the UAE government had set a deadline of three months for all illegal foreign workers to either get legal status to stay in this country or face deportation.

The Indian mission will begin issuing emergency certificates in a phased manner from July 1, according to the statement. Those who had applied for their emergency certificates before the amnesty was announced can collect them from the consulate on July 1.

All those who applied to the various collection centres on June 11 can collect their emergency Certificates from the Indian High School in Dubai on July 1. Those who applied on June 12 can collect their certificates on July 2 and so on.

The mission has also requested all applicants to check the dates on the receipt and report to the Indian High School in Dubai or the Indian Association office in Sharjah on the date indicated on their receipt.

There are around 1.4 million expatriate Indians in Dubai, many of them contract workers.