KCM Godsend For AP’s Migrant Workers Doing Jobs In Middle East

According to sources, nearly 15,000 people belonging to Konaseema are working in different countries of the Middle East. However, some of them are facing a lot of hardships due to harassment by people or companies they work for, slave labour, and unhealthy working conditions.

Many of these workers are also victims of fake visa agents, Unable to bear such working conditions, when several of them try to return to their native places, they face difficulties, as they do not know whom to approach when their bosses do not let them leave.

Having studied this problem, Konaseema district collector Mahesh decided to set up the Konaseema Centre for Migration (KCM) as well as Vikasa, an employment generation organisation.

From the time KCM has been set up, it has so far received 199 applications from migrant workers facing difficulties abroad. 40 of these people have been repatriated successfully to their villages. In addition, the centre has helped bring bodies of workers who have died in these countries following accidents or even suicide.

Collector Mahesh Kumar told Deccan Chronicle that initially, the centre faced many procedural challenges. But these have now been overcome.

He said KCM is identifying fake agents and creating awareness among people about approaching the centre before they leave for work.

In one such case, a youth approached the centre with a job order from Cherry Pickle Company in Canada with a salary of $10,000. KCM inquired and found the order to be bogus.

The youth saved himself from the clutches of the agent. In another case, a hotel management person with 12 years of experience got an appointment from a hotel in the USA with Euro 11,800 salary.

The centre identified that the hotel is actually in Italy and not in the US. Another person K. Saibabu applied for a job through websites. He got a job offer which the centre identified as fake.

Vikasa project director K. Lacha Rao said the centre is not only working for migrants from Konaseema district but also helping those from other districts like West and East Godavari districts.

He appealed to workers getting offers to first contact KCM before leaving for any country for work.