India, UAE to hold high-level talks on workers’ issues

Newsgram Staff Writer

New Delhi: Officials of India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are scheduled to hold a high-level dialogue on workers' issues during Overseas Indian Affairs ministry secretary A K Agarwal's visit to the Gulf nation beginning on Wednesday.

Agarwal, during his four-day visit, will meet senior officials of the UAE's labor ministry and discuss various issues pertaining to recruitment and employment of Indian workers.

The visit is being coordinated by the Indian embassy in the UAE and the Consulate General of India in Dubai.

The entire Gulf region, where millions of Indians are working, particularly in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, is a major source of India's foreign exchange earnings.

Agarwal will call on the UAE's Culture, Youth and Community Development Minister Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan. He will also visit the Indian Workers' Resource Centre (IWRC) in Dubai.

The IWRC, run by the Indian embassy in the UAE, provides information, guidance and counseling to Indian citizens in distress through a 24×7 helpline and a walk-in counseling centre.

Agarwal will also visit the industrial city of Abu Dhabi and a labor camp in Sharjah to meet Indian workers, the Overseas Indian Affairs Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

The secretary will meet foreign employers and interact with representatives of registered Indian associations in the UAE to brief them about the ministry's initiatives and schemes for engagement with the Indian diaspora.

(With inputs from IANS)