India eases eMigrate system for foreign recruitment

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India eases eMigrate system for foreign recruitment

Dubai - The Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs on Monday issued an order directing changes in the system.

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Published: Wed 2 Sep 2015, 12:00 AM

Last updated: Wed 2 Sep 2015, 9:45 PM

The Indian government has modified its online recruitment system after a plethora of complaints from foreign employers, workers and recruitment agencies. Due to glitches in the 'eMigrate system', thousands of blue-collar Indian workers had lost jobs in the UAE and other GCC countries.
The Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs on Monday issued an order directing changes in the system.
Khaleej Times was the first to report the snags and complaints, after which the Indian Embassy in the UAE requested New Delhi to suspend the system till December-end. Thousands of visas had expired and blue-collar labour recruitment from India came to a halt since the launch of the system here on July 1.

 WHAT'S NEW IN REVAMPED SYSTEM?* The revamped system will auto-generate job IDs and job codes for foreign employers, which will help them generate employment contracts from the system itself.
* Foreign employers need to secure attestation of visas from Indian missions before they upload it to the system to get the job ID and job code
* The revamped system has eliminated the need for workers in India to visit the office of the Protector of Emigrants (PoE) concerned. Instead, they can apply online for emigration clearance after receiving the attested visa and employment contract signed by the employer
* Workers can pay the emigration clearance fees to the PoEs online. They can also pay it through the State Bank of India and submit the receipt to the PoE by hand
However, during his visit to the UAE in mid-August, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has mandated Indian officials to fix the system in 30 days.
The modification of recruitment procedures comes two weeks prior to Modi's deadline and just ahead of the Indo-UAE joint commission meeting in New Delhi. The high-level meet will be co-chaired by the foreign ministers of both countries today and tomorrow.
Foreign employers, including those hiring housemaids for their families, still need to register with the Indian missions through the eMigrate system. They also need to submit the hard copies of the required documents within 10 calendar days after online registration.
The revamped system will auto-generate job IDs and job codes for foreign employers, which will help them generate employment contracts from the system itself. It has also allowed direct recruitment under the Indian mission's attestation till December 31. By then, officials expect to tweak the online recruitment process further after analysing the feedback on the revised method.
As per the new method, foreign employers have to secure the attestation of visas from Indian missions before they upload it to the system to get the job ID and job code. In the UAE, the attestation is done through the outsourced agency IVS Global Services.
The revamped system has also eliminated the need for workers in India to visit the office of the Protector of Emigrants (PoE) concerned. Instead, they can apply online for emigration clearance after receiving the attested visa and employment contract signed by the employer.
While workers can pay the emigration clearance fees to the PoEs online, they have also been given the provision to pay it through the State Bank of India and submit the receipt to the PoE by hand.
A senior official with the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi told Khaleej Times the modified system has not only simplified the procedures, but also reduced the number of approvals required at various levels and eliminated mandatory requirement for workers to visit PoE offices.
"With all these changes, we hope the system will facilitate faster processing of applications," said Dinesh Kumar, First Secretary (Community Affairs).
sajila@khaleejtimes.com


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