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Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s two-day visit to the United Arab Emirates was a historic event for bilateral relations but it turned out to be a disappointment for the lower strata of the Indian Diaspora in the Gulf region which had expected a string of policy announcements that would benefit them.
Expats in the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries, who make up the largest community of Indian Diaspora in the world, had been excited about Modi’s visit. The majority of these Gulf expats are low-paid workers. For instance, an estimated two-thirds of UAE’s nearly 27 lakh Indians (not counting illegal immigrants), are blue-collar workers earning lower wages. Expats in Abu Dhabi and Dubai told BusinessLine over phone that they had expected Modi would use his address at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Monday to announce pro-NRI measures. That was not to be. Instead, in his 75-minute speech, Modi lavishly praised the Diaspora for their service to the nation and their role in developing the Gulf economies. But there was no takeaway from the meeting for the low-earning majority.
KV Abdul Khader, general secretary of Kerala Pravasi Sangham, said the extremely high fare charged by airlines, including Air India and Air India Express, on the Gulf route was the biggest issue for the Gulf Keralites. The airlines raise the fares during festivals. During the Eid festival, airfare had gone up by four to six times). Pravasi organisations have for years been petitioning the Union Government to check seasonal fare hike and to bring down fares during normal times. Khader told BusinessLine that the Gulf NRIs from Kerala had hoped Modi would announce steps to curtail the fares.
An NRI, based in Sharjah, said he had expected Modi to announce that atleast the state-run Air India and Air India Express would not be allowed to squeeze the Gulf expats.
Another NRI from Kochi pointed out that as of now the airfare from Dubai to London was only 1999 dirhams, but a flight to Kochi, which involved half the flying time, would cost 3300 dirhams.
Another major issue was the voting rights for NRI in the Lok Sabha and State Assembly elections. On the wish-list were other long-pending issues such as rehabilitation schemes and pension plans for NRIs returning home for good after working in the Gulf for several years.
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