Daijiworld Media Network - KSA
Report & Pic: M L A Hashmi
Saudi Arabia, Apr 27: Pranab Mukherjee, external affairs minister and E Ahmed, minister of state external affairs, govt. of India visited the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia last week.
Seizing this opportunity, a delegation of "Tanzeem Hum Hindustani" including Mohammed Quaiser, president THH, Imtiaz Ahsan, secretary THH and Mirza Azmathullah Baig, joint secreatry, THH met the honorable ministers separately.
The delegation then handed over a memorandum to them at the Indian embassy and Riyadh palace hotel respectively, and brought to their attention number of issues facing the NRI's, including a demand for opening up a consulate office in the eastern region here.
Mohammed Quaiser briefed the ministers about the increasing number of theft, loot and snatching incidents taking place in various cities especially in Riyadh. Indian citizens are fast becoming soft targets for these anti-social elements, and therefore urged that the matter be taken up to higher authorities, so as to save Indians from such unsavory incidents in future.
Tanzeem Hum Hindustani also made a representation to make necessary arrangements for certificate attestation by foreign affairs ministry here itself, after die verification by the Indian embassy in KSA. Currently certificates have to be send to the Saudi embassy in Delhi or to Saudi consulate in Mumbai, which is too time consuming as well as hectic. As a result needy people are constrained to visit these places or have to wait for a long time for attestation.
'Hum Hindustani' is also demanding opening of a Consulate at Dammam as nearly 30% of 1.6 million Indians are working in the eastern region and facing number of difficulties in settling their embassy related issues. A size-able portion of NRI's are labourers and it is a burden for them to come all the way to Riyadh, which is at a distance of 500 kms.
Further 'Hum Hindustani' has urged for making necessary arrangements with regard to elections, so that NRI's too can exercise their fundamental right of voting to choose the governments. Moreover in a memorandum submitted they have urged the Govt. of India to take necessary steps for the education of NRI's children and also in case of repatriation. Govt. they said should introduce solid schemes for their employment and rehabilitation.
Quaiser informed further that NRI's are a major source of foreign exchange and instrumental in generating country's revenue. The "Tanzeem Hum Hindustani" also demanded that the ministers should constitute a group consisting of public representatives, officials of external affairs & overseas ministry. They must then study the problems of NRI's of Gulf in-depth for working out solutions, he added.