India defers mandatory attestation of job letters

The Indian government had made this proposal last year and the mandatory attestations were to be done by the Indian missions in the respective Gulf countries.

The primary aim of this scheme was to safeguard the rights of Indian workers. But its implementation had to be deferred four times following intense pressure from the recruiting agents and companies.

The Indian Consulate in Dubai has received a notification from the Government stating that the move to introduce mandatory attestation has been deferred until further notice.

An official from the consulate said "We just received a notice from the government saying that the mandatory attestation proposal will be implemented later."

Meanwhile, a source in Delhi told Khaleej Times, the Indian government may drop the plan altogether due to the immense pressure from recruiting agents there and the companies concerned. "Currently mandatory attestation for job offer letters is needed only when un-skilled workers are hired. The government's plan was to extend this rule to cover semi-skilled and skilled workers. But it will be an effective check on the fraudulent business carried on by recruiting agents and unscrupulous companies. Obviously, that is the reason why it is being so heavily opposed," said the source.

"Companies blacklisted by the Indian missions for violating workers' rights continue to hire workers from India by establishing new companies under different names. If the rule of mandatory attestation is implemented, all the companies will be forced to deal with the missions on a daily basis. That will enable the missions to stop the errant companies," the source pointed out.