By IANS,
New Delhi : In a major boon for Indian citizens who find themselves in distress overseas, the government Thursday set up an annual Rs.1.6 crore (Rs.16 million) fund that will operate through the country’s diplomatic missions in 18 nations, mostly in the Middle East and Africa.
The decision to create the India Community Welfare Fund (ICWF) was taken at a cabinet meting presided over by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni told reporters.
Under it, Indian missions in seven countries — Qatar, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain and Malaysia — would annually be provided Rs.15 lakh each “to meet contingency expenditure incurred by them for carrying out various welfare activities for overseas Indian citizens who are in distress,” Soni said.
Missions in 11 other countries — Libya, Jordan, Yemen, Sudan, Afghanistan, Indonesia, Syria, Lebanon, Thailand, the Maldives and Iraq — will annually get Rs.500,000 each.
According to Soni, the ICWF is aimed at providing the following services:
* Boarding and lodging for distressed overseas Indian workers in household/domestic sectors and unskilled labourers,
* Extending emergency medical care to the overseas Indians in need,
* Providing air passage to stranded overseas Indians in need,
* Providing initial legal assistance to overseas Indians in deserving cases, and
* Expenditure on incidentals and for airlifting the mortal remains to India or local cremation/burial of the deceased overseas Indian in such cases where a sponsor is unable or unwilling to do so as per the contract and the family is unable to meet the cost.
Explaining the rationale for launching the fund, Soni said: “Overseas Indian workers duped by unscrupulous intermediaries in the host countries, runaway house maids, those who become victim of accidents, deserted spouses of overseas Indians or undocumented overseas Indian workers in need of emergency assistance or any other overseas Indian citizens who are in distress would be the main beneficiaries of the fund.
“The fund will also be utilised to meet the expenditure for airlifting the mortal remains of overseas Indian citizens to India on the recommendation of the respective heads of missions.”