Thiruvananthapuram: Concerned over the continuing flow of Keralites to Saudi Arabia despite the tightening of labour laws, the state government will press the centre to make the emigration rules more stringent.
NORKA Minister K.C. Joseph told DC that only those with genuine visas and labour documents should be allowed to migrate so that any exodus in future could be avoided.
“Even as thousands of Malayalis are returning from Saudi following the implementation of Nitaqat, many Malayalis still travel to that country pursuing jobs.
It has to be ensured that all of them travel with genuine documents. The emigration authorities as well as the Protectors of Emigrants should ensure this. Hence we will be pursuing the matter with the centre,” said Joseph.
K. T. A. Muneer, a representative of NORKA–Roots in Jeddah, said that there was no decline in the arrival of NRKs seeking jobs in Saudi Arabia these days. “Since the Saudi government is strictly enforcing Nitaqat, those travelling with ‘free visas’ would be inviting trouble,” he told DC over phone from Jeddah.
He said the decision of the Saudi authorities to make all further recruitments from other countries only through mega recruitment agencies to be accredited by the Saudi government would curb illegal emigration to a great extent.
