In the gulf of despair
Caught between dreams of prosperity and the harsh realities of migration, semiskilled and unskilled Indian workers face grim challenges as they seek a livelihood in the Gulf. Misled by unscrupulous agents, many residents of Telangana find themselves trapped in debt and legal trouble, raising questions about the efficacy of government support and role of international agreements in protecting migrant rights, reports P. Sridhar
For close to two decades, Yellavva has been tethered to the anguish of separation, waiting endlessly for the return of her husband, who is languishing in jail in a foreign country since 2005. The 45yearold stone cutter from Chandurthi village near Telangana’s temple town of Vemulawada has been leading a handtomouth existence, and singlehandedly raised her three children since her husband, Gollem Nampelly, left for Dubai in search of greener pastures.
Fondly known as Nampelly Venkati, the 51yearold is among five Gulf migrant workers from the erstwhile composite Karimnagar district, who were convicted by a Dubai court and sentenced to 25 years in jail for the death of a Nepali man in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at the fag end of 2005. Venkati left for Dubai in 2003, nurturing hopes of earning a substantial income to carve out a bright future for his three children — two sons and a daughter. But fate willed otherwise. He used to get a pittance as a construction worker, with hardly any savings to send back home.
The other four convicted in the murder case — Shivarathri Mallesh, his brother Shivarathri Ravi, D. Laxman, and S. Hanumanthu — were released from prison recently after serving 18 years of their sentence following approval of their mercy petitions by the UAE government. They were repatriated to India last month, paving the way for reunion with their families here.
However, for Yellavva and her children, the wait for Venkati’s return drags on. There is no clarity yet on when he will be released and repatriated to India, she says, breaking into tears.
Yellavva eked out a living by working in a stone quarry after her husband was imprisoned in Dubai. This took a toll on her health as she developed severe back pain and as a result, abandoned the arduous occupation and stared selling cornonthecob at the local bus stand to make both ends meet.
She earns barely ₹4,000 per month and is largely dependent on rice supplied through the public distribution system for sustenance. Braving adversity, she managed to arrange the wedding of her daughter, Radha, to a stone cutter of Chintakunta village in Jagtial district of Telangana a couple of years ago.
Ambition vs adversity
Yellavva resides in a tileroofed, singleroom house in Chandurthi, the erstwhile Naxal hotbed in the old undivided Karimnagar district, now part of Rajanna Sircilla district, along with her two sons, aged 27 and 23. “Backbreaking poverty and droughtlike conditions forced him to leave for Dubai,” she recalls, citing the lack of livelihood opportunities in the once droughtprone region that triggered migration of many unskilled and semiskilled youth from north Telangana to Gulf countries over the last three decades.
Most of the migrants, however, got caught up in a debttrap while some landed behind the bars after being cheated by unscrupulous travel agents, who sent them abroad on ‘visit cum employment and tourist visas’, says a resident of Chandurthi, requesting anonymity.
“I went to Dubai in 2019. I met my father thrice in jail during visiting hours and worked there at a construction site for a few months before returning home the same year,” says Venkati’s elder son Raju, a B.A. graduate. Raju is presently working as an outsourced employee in the office of the Vemulawada Temple Development Authority. He says he had last spoken to his father during visiting hours in jail in 2019, while Yellavva had a conversation with Venkati on phone weeks before his imprisonment in 2005.
“I was a child when my father left for Dubai to ensure a bright future for us. But he is languishing behind bars in a faraway country and we are feeling his absence every moment,” he says, his eyes welling up, even as he appeals to the State and Central governments to ensure his father’s release from prison at the earliest.
According to one of the Gulf returnees, Venkati’s release has been delayed due to late processing of relevant documents. “He is expected to be set free from jail as soon as his mercy petition has already been approved,” says the returnee, unwilling to be identified.
“Our tale of woes should serve as an eyeopener to those aspiring to migrate to Gulf countries,” says Srinivas, 29, a stone cutter and son of Mallesh, a Gulf returnee of Peddur near the textile town of Sircilla. “I had to discontinue my studies after high school to support my mother in eking out a living in the absence of my father. He always wanted to see me as a government employee but circumstances compelled me to take up stone cutting work, our traditional occupation,” he rues.
Concerted efforts
Sircilla MLA and former Minister K.T. Rama Rao’s efforts since 2013 led to the release of the four migrant workers from the old, undivided Karimnagar district, seven years ahead of their prison term in Dubai, says Mallesh.
An amount of ₹15 lakh donated by a Hyderabadbased philanthropist, Rajasekhar, was handed over to the family of the deceased Nepali man as ‘victim’s compensation’ as per the Sharia law, ‘Diyyah’, in Kathmandu in May 2013. This eventually paved the way for approval of their mercy petitions by the UAE authorities, resulting in their release and repatriation to India.
Since the formation of Telangana in 2014, the upland mandals in Rajanna Sircilla district witnessed a remarkable change with increased groundwater table, irrigation facilities, and agriculture production, creating ample livelihood opportunities, notes Bhaskar, a farmer of Chandurthi mandal. There is no dearth of work in the farm sector as agriculture workers from several other States are flocking to the district to work at the farms here, he claims.
Vulnerable and exploited
The number of Indian prisoners, including undertrials, is estimated to be about 2,143 in the UAE, and 2,200 in Saudi Arabia as of December 8, 2023, according to official sources. Of the total 9,521 Indian prisoners in 89 countries, nearly 5,950 (62%) are in jail in various Gulf countries.
India has signed an Agreement on Transfer of Sentenced Persons (TSP) with 31 countries, including five Gulf countries — Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, says Mandha Bheem Reddy, International convener for the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee’s NRI wing.
Legal aid should be given to Indian prisoners by the State and Central governments through Indian Missions abroad, prisoner exchange agreements must be implemented effectively, and awareness campaigns on the law of the land and host countries customs should be conducted for the benefit of Indian expatriates, Reddy suggests.
The Migrant Forum in Asia’s (MFA) intervention helped in facilitating the release of the four Gulf migrant workers from the Dubai jail recently due to its wide panAsia network.
Official sources said predeparture orientation, skill development programmes are being organised under the aegis of the resource persons of the Telangana Overseas Manpower Company (TOMCOM), a State government undertaking.
The TOMCOM is tasked with providing travel, passport, visa and stamping assistance, and familiarising workers with overseas work conditions and culture of the destination point. “TOMCOM services need to be expanded, and rehabilitation and reintegration of Gulf returnees be taken up on a mission mode,” suggests Swadesh Parkipandla, Telangana unit president of the Pravasi Mitra Labour Union, affiliated to Building and Wood Workers International.
Help desks should be set up to help the families of incarcerated migrants back home. All the stakeholders should be involved in raising awareness to prevent gullible youth from falling prey to the tactics of errant agents involved in unauthorised recruitment in the name of ‘visit cum employment’ visas, he insists.
Death in the Gulf
Around 15 lakh migrant workers, mostly low and semiskilled persons from Telangana, are working in the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and other Asian countries, including Malaysia. A major chunk of them hail from north Telangana and they are significantly contributing to India’s foreign exchange reserve, Emigrants’ Welfare Forum (EWF) sources say. Over 2,000 migrant workers from Telangana have died in the Gulf countries in the last 10 years, sources add.
EWF and various other organisations have long been demanding the Central government to amend the provisions of the Pravasi Bharatiya Bima Yojana insurance scheme to also cover natural death (death due to any reason).
“A wellentrenched network of unauthorised Gulf agents is thriving in north Telangana, cheating gullible unemployed youth by fleecing them on the pretext of employment in the Gulf countries,” deplores Ramesh, a Gulf returnee of Pudur in Jagtial district.
Vemulawada DSP Nagendra Chary says 29 cases were booked against unauthorised Gulf agents in the last one year within the Vemulawada police subdivision limits. “One accused named Chandrasekhar of Boinpally mandal was arrested last month on charges of cheating unemployed youth by promising them jobs abroad,” he adds.
I was a child when my father left for Dubai in 2003 to ensure a bright future for us. But he is languishing behind bars there and we are feeling his absence every moment
NAMPELLY RAJU
Outsourced employee, Vemulawada Temple Development Authority
A wellentrenched network of unauthorised Gulf agents is thriving in north Telangana, cheating gullible unemployed youth on the pretext of providing employment
RAMESH
A Gulf returnee