KOCHI: Be wary of the illegal overseas recruitment agencies! That is what the authorities concerned are asking the public to do after several agencies sprung up lately in the state amid the pandemic, eyeing a chance to dupe people by promising better jobs abroad.
They say the latest nurses’ recruitment scam by Kochi-based agency Take Off should be an eye-opener as many unlicensed agencies are using social media to offer employment, particularly to those who have lost their jobs.
There are only around 300 licensed overseas manpower recruitment agencies in Kerala, but many other illegal agencies operate claiming to be sub-agents of licensed agencies.Officials at the Protector of Emigrants (PoE) under the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) say though they have opened an exclusive cell to answer the queries of the people on the recruitment process and warned people not to fall for promises of jobs by offering visit visa many a time, they don’t take the fraudsters seriously and land in trouble.
“In the case of Take Off, several people called us to find about the agency. We conveyed to all of them that going abroad on a visit visa hoping for an employment was very risky and they should not make any payment for such a visa. While many listened to us, a few fell prey to the agency’s plot. We know that people are desperate during this time,” said an officer at PoE.
Manpower Exporters Association (Kerala) general secretary Chacko T Varghese said many people are falling for the offers. “The situation is expected to become worse as these fraudsters will devise new means to target the gullible. We have been coordinating with the police and other agencies concerned on passing on details of the illegal agencies. A licensed agency should only collect a prescribed service charge from a candidate after successfully completing the recruitment process. Demanding money more than the prescribed service charge is illegal,” said Chacko.
There are two categories of licensing for the agencies registered under MEA. In the first, an agency should deposit `50 lakh with the MEA for getting an operational licence for eight years. In the second, which was introduced two years ago, an operational licence is given to an agency which deposits `8 lakh with the MEA, but it will be allowed only to conduct a total of 100 recruitment during the period. City Police Commissioner Nagaraju Chakilam said the people should be in touch with the police before committing to any offers by recruitment agencies. “Public can approach police if they feel suspicious about the activities of an agency,” he said.
KEEP IN MIND
Public should contact the offices of Protector of Emigrants before accepting offers of overseas employment from agencies. They should check the background of the agencies (PoE office Kochi, Ph:0484-2315400; PoE Office, Thiruvananthapuram, Ph:0471-2324835, 2336625, 2336626, Fax 2324835).
Going abroad on a visit visa hoping for an employment is very risky and should not make any payment for such visas
A licensed agency should only take a prescribed amount of service charge from a candidate for completing an overseas recruitment process. The service charge is capped at `30,000.
The office of PoE in Kochi has a jurisdiction covering the districts of Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur, Kasaragod and UT of Lakshadweep while PoE office in Thiruvananthapuram covers Thiruvanathapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Kottayam, Idukki and Alappuzha districts.
NOT THE FIRST TIME
This is not the first time a major nursing recruitment scam is taking place in Kochi. In June 2015, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested Protector of Emigrants (PoE) in Kochi in connection with a nursing-job scam in which agencies recruited nurses for Ministry of Health, Kuwait, after collecting excessive service charge from them.
The PoE identified as L Adolfus of Kollam was arrested after he was found to be extending undue favours to the recruitment agencies, even after the scam was unearthed by investigation agencies. He was accused of helping a few agencies in conducting illegal recruitment. The CBI also arrested Uthup Varghese, proprietor of Al Zarafa Travels and Manpower Consultancy, in connection with the scam. The investigation by CBI found that Al Zarafa Travels recruited 1,200 nurses for the Ministry of Health, Kuwait, after collecting excessive fees from each candidate allegedly with the knowledge of Adolfus.