Devendra Bhattarai

The lack of representation and self-definition for Nepali workers in India needs to be rectified

For the first time in Nepali history, a committee established to increase the efficiency and transparency of the Department of Foreign Employment (DoFE) has recognised India as a major destination for migrant workers. This is an important development in the face of the prevalent understanding of foreign employment as being limited to the Department, the Foreign Employment Board and at the most, the airport.

Transit in India

The fact that India has been identified as a Nepali worker's destination and that it must be made safe and systematised is in itself a big deal. There are particular reasons for this. Work permits that are only issued by the DoFE can be found more easily in Delhi transit than at travel agencies in Koteshwor and Gaushala. Everyday, two to three passports with fake work permits reach the consular section of the Nepali Embassy in Delhi. Stacks of these passports make their way back to Kathmandu from Delhi in diplomatic parcels. On top of this, both the makers of the fake permits and their users visit the embassy with their own problems. But the police, the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB), the military attaché and the three to four diplomats working as counselors at the Nepali Embassy, who witness this forgery every day, are unable to raise a finger. Their answer is clear, “We have no mechanism to stop the trafficking of Nepali workers in a foreign land.”

The Nepali government seems to only know of one way to address the trafficking of Nepalis from Delhi transit—increased control over Nepali workers who use the Delhi airport for travel. But besides Delhi, there are around two dozen Indian airports, including Lucknow, Calcutta and Chennai, that are linked to international destinations. To give an example, the Nepali Embassy in Delhi received information that over a two-week period, 50 Nepali women took flights from Bagdogra to Trivandrum Airport then heading to Kurdistan, Iraq, Tanzania and Kenya. Even after obtaining this information, the embassy was unable to do anything. All the relevant stakeholders, from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the DoFE in Kathmandu to the Nepali Embassy in Delhi are all mute spectators.

This problem became acute around two months ago when it took two weeks for the bodies of five Nepali workers who died in Goa to be returned to Nepal. Their bodies were not even given coffins to be transported in. Furthermore, the government provided no assistance, compensation or condolences whatsoever. The reason they were treated thus was because “they worked in India. There is no rule or regulation that requires them to be recognised as foreign workers.”

Unclear provisions

This is the bitter truth. To travel to India, Nepalis do not need to register anywhere nor visit the DoFE. But when a worker gets into trouble in India, it is the DoFE that is under scrutiny. This double standard has yet to be questioned. No one has been able to come forward and say that while an open border trade and transit treaty between Nepal and India has its benefits, it is now important to start keeping records of foreign workers working in both countries. The Nepali Embassy does not want to put forth such an 'unnecessary' suggestion, as it fears that this will lead to the placement of additional responsibilities on the embassy.

In terms of making a judgment about India, which has become an unofficial transit for Nepali foreign workers, two points should be considered. First, the context within which Nepali workers travel freely for work to India and second, the uncertainty faced by those that have been trafficked through Delhi transit. Only by considering both these situations can safe, respectful and systematic foreign employment rules and regulations be drafted. The trend of stipulating 'except India' in foreign policy cannot be continued any longer. Nepali politicians who visit Delhi in the name of 'security, development and politics' should also discuss the issue of human trafficking. It is estimated that around four million Nepalis work in India but there are no official records to verify this. Since there is no requirement to keep records of people who cross the open border between India and Nepal, the numbers are only an estimate. The problem is the servile attitude of Nepal's politicians. India is not considered a foreign land, leading to silence on the part of Nepal's political parties in terms of securing the rights of Nepali workers.

The Non-Resident Nepali Association (NRNA)'s newly elected working committee recently established the Foreign Employment Benefit Fund in its first meeting and committed to work towards the welfare of Nepali foreign workers. But according to the NRNA's constitution, it cannot open local chapters in the Saarc region, making it impossible for Nepali foreign workers in India to benefit from the association. So the NRNA must clarify its stance on Nepali workers in India. By clearly defining the term 'Indian Nepalis' v 'Nepalis in India', the NRNA must come up with a plan to address worker concerns in India.

Include India

Likewise, even Nepal Rastra Bank issues statistics on the inflow of remmittance with an 'except India' disclaimer. But Everest Bank, IME and Prabhu Money Transfer have been remitting around 20 billion rupees a year from India alone. This could be a lot more if the amount of informal transfer of money is included. However, Nepal's political parties and their leaders have been unable to distinguish between foreigners and nationals when it comes to India. Someday in the future, Nepalis working abroad will gain the right to vote but given the current state of affairs, it looks as though even this will come with an 'except India' clause.

Nepali politicians need to immediately address the lack of representation and self-definition currently denied to Nepali workers in India. Over the last six months, UCPN (Maoist) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal, CPN-UML leader Madhav Kumar Nepal and Nepali Congress leader Sher Bahadur Deuba have all landed in New Delhi as 'former prime ministers'. Prime Minister Sushil Koirala and leaders Pradeep Giri and KP Sharma Oli have also visited India in their own capacities. However, these politicians only requested roads, bridges and flood relief for their own electoral area. The glaring fact that they were unable to put forward the issues of Nepali workers in India was not of interest to anyone.

Published on: 16 March 2014 | The Kathmandu Post