day Saudi-Indian Joint Commission meeting starting Oct. 31 will initiate preliminary talks on labor issues leading to the signing of uniform labor agreement with Saudi Arabia, said Rajeev Shahare, Deputy Chief of Mission, Indian Embassy in Riyadh. India has been proposing signing of uniform labor agreement with six-state Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). India has recently signed a similar agreement with Bahrain. Speaking at a press conference here Tuesday, Shahare said a delegation from India will arrive for two-day talks with their Saudi counterparts in Riyadh. Speaking about the labor issues Shahare said Indian Embassy in Riyadh issued around 3,977 emergency certificates to Indian workers during the past eight months. Emergency certificates are issued to all Indian nationals upon proving the national identity. Shahare said the Indian Embassy's Welfare Wing has its own mechanism to ascertain if the documents such as a copy of Indian passport or ration card are genuine. The same procedures also apply to Indian citizens, who are residents of Jammu and Kashmir and awaiting deportation in Riyadh, he said. The Indian detainees were awaiting deportation after their sponsors reported them as runaway or absconding workers. However, there are 397 Indians still waiting to be deported at a deportation center Riyadh, he said. On an average 5,000 emergency certificates are issued by the Indian Embassy every year, Shahare said. Shahare said the embassy has been assisting Indian workers by providing advice and other support in resolving labor disputes. He said during the past eight months around 296 labor dispute cases involving delayed salaries to end-of-service-benefits and other complaints were settled through labor courts. The embassy has established a helpline that operates 24/7 for distressed Indians who can seek assistance by calling on numbers 01-4884491, 4884697, 4881982. A press statement issued at the press briefing said the embassy runs a shelter for runaway housemaids, who are picked up by the embassy's vehicle on receipt of information from public or Saudi police and kept in the shelter till they are accepted by the deportation center for deportation. Currently, the number of Indians in Saudi prison is 1,339 detained on various charges like liquor consumption/pedaling (30 percent), iqama and other forgeries (15 percent) and traffic accidents (10 percent).
