Thiruvananthapuram: With the announcement of external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj still remaining on paper, many nursing visa holders have been denied entry at various airports in the state over the last one week.
In Thiruvananthapuram international airport alone, five nurses with employment visa in Gulf countries were not allowed to travel by emigration authorities for want of clearance from Protector of Emigrants this past week.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had recently announced that nurses who were issued visas before May 31 would be granted emigration clearance.
However the Protectors of Emigrants and airport emigration authorities are yet to receive any instructions about such relaxations.
“Since there are no fresh instructions after the new norms mandating emigration clearance from PoE for nursing job visas came into effect on May 31, we are unable to allow those holding visas issued prior to that date and do not have clearance form PoE to travel,” an emigration official said.
Though some of the nursing visa holders approached the PoE offices seeking clearance, the authorities there also expressed helplessness saying they could grant emigration clearance only to nursing visas processed though the three government-authorised agencies.
“We have not received any instruction on granting clearance to visas issued by other agencies,” said a PoE official.
