Kuwait Tragedy Underscores Need For New Emigration Law

Recently, both Kuwait and India, especially Kerala, woke up to a heartbreaking 

tragedy — a fire in a six-storeyed building in Mangaf had claimed the lives of 49 migrant workers, including over 40 Indians, in a Keralite-run Kuwaiti construction company. 

Kuwait Tragedy Underscores Need For New Emigration Law

The Kuwaiti government has initiated a probe and ordered a raid to find violations in buildings housing migrant workers. 

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• Mangaf, a 30-minute drive from Kuwait City, is known for accommodating low- and mid level migrant workers from India, Bangladesh, and Egypt in poor conditions.
• The Indian ministry of external affairs (MEA) has set up help desks and hotlines, and the minister of state has arrived in Kuwait to assess the situation. 
• The government has also declared a compensation of ₹2 lakh each to the families of the Indians who died in the fire.
• However, media attention will shift from the tragedy to other news, and the MEA will become preoccupied with other pressing issues. 
• The fact is that, despite India being the largest sender of migrants with around 13 million Indians working abroad, and the largest receiver of remittances ($11,100 crore), it has frequently failed to uphold the rights of Indian workers on foreign Soil.
• The Union government continues to govern migration with the outdated Indian Emigration Act of 1983, despite significant changes in migration worldwide. 
• In 2019, there was an attempt to update the Act, but it failed to get Parliament’s approval. 
• Two years later, a fresh version, the Emigration Bill 2021, was put forward. 
• Suggestions were sought from the public and civil society organisations, but not much has been heard about it since then.
• The existing Emigration Act lacks standardised Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for assisting Indians in foreign countries. 
• This gap became evident during the Covid-19 pandemic when Indians stranded abroad sought to return home. 
• Then, Indians were repatriated by their employers, mainly from the Gulf Cooperation Council countries (Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, United Arab Emirates), which lack labour friendly laws. 
• They returned empty-handed.
• The Indian government lacked an effective mechanism to recover their unpaid wages or endof-service benefits, amounting to lakhs of rupees for many. 
• Meanwhile, smaller out-migrant countries such as the Philippines actively fought against such wage theft. 
• Similar issues arose in Qatar, when Indian workers involved in building stadiums for the football World Cup were exploited and repatriated without receiving their wages. 
• The Indian government was silent.
• Similarly, during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Indian students had to take shelter in bunkers, fearing for their lives. 
• India lacked SOPs and an estimate of the number of students stranded, which meant it took days to ascertain the situation.
• Now, let’s explore another reason why an updated Emigration Act is necessary and how it could prove beneficial during tragedies, including the Kuwait fire.
• The Indian government provides insurance coverage of ₹10 lakh in case of accidental death or permanent disability, along with other benefits, for Indians migrating for employment. 
• Unfortunately, this scheme is mandatory only for those migrating to certain countries, holding specific passports, and using the eMigrate system established by the late external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj.
• The covered destinations are 18 nations where labour-friendly laws are lacking and there are security risks. 
• Among them are all six Gulf countries, Malaysia, Iraq, and Yemen. 
• The chances of exploitation of migrant workers are high in these countries, including through denial of decent working and living conditions, among other forms.
• The existing Emigration Act provides for two categories of passports, Emigration Clearance Required (ECR) and Emigration Clearance Not Required (ECNR).
• Passports held by under-matriculate workers are of the ECR category. 
• Such workers must use the eMigrate system and are obligated to subscribe to the insurance scheme if they wish to migrate to the aforementioned 18 countries. 
• If these requirements are not met, families of victims of incidents such as the Kuwait tragedy may not receive the ₹10 lakh compensation. 
• Media reports indicate that the Kuwait fire victims from Kerala were skilled migrants and highly educated, likely falling under the ECNR category — subscribing to the insurance scheme would not have been mandatory for them.
• Labour migration activists have been urging the Indian government to update the Emigration Act and address the existence of two passport categories, emphasising equal protection for both. 
• As a labour migration researcher and forced labour investigator, I advocate updating the Emigration Act, eliminating the ECR and ECNR distinction, and establishing a comprehensive migration policy, similar to those in neighbouring countries. 
• India requires a visionary plan rather than mere response measures.

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Conclusion

The outdated Indian Emigration Act must be updated to ensure comprehensive protection for all migrant workers, addressing both their immediate needs and long-term welfare.

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