STATEMENT BY SHRI EDUARDO FALEIRO, COMMISSIONER FOR NRI AFFAIRS

(May 28, 2010 )

Goan workers abroad are sometimes cheated by recruiting agents or refused employment by their sponsors and get stranded or jailed in foreign countries. In some cases, the worker dies abroad and the employer refuses to bear the cost to transportation of the body to Goa. In other instances, the worker may meet a serious accident and may require medical assistance in India but he / she may not have the financial resources to cover the expenses.

I have formulated an Emergency Repatriation Fund. It will extend financial assistance in the most deserving cases of repatriation of Goan workers when they and their families are not in a position to meet the expenses. I have also formulated an Awareness Campaign to check illegal recruitment and to warn people against unauthorized recruiting agents. These two schemes were forwarded to the then Secretary for NRI Affairs with a direction to include them in the last Budget. However, due to the incompetence and negligence of this officer the two schemes did not find a place in the Budget. This officer had since been removed as Secretary NRI Affairs and disciplinary proceedings have been initiated against him. Some years ago, the same officer had been caught red handed accepting a bribe. Several individuals and NGOs had then demanded a CBI inquiry into the incident. One such organization was the Nittol Jinn Trust chaired by Shri Arvind Bhatikar, the first Goan IAS officer i.e. the first person in Goa to be directly recruited into the I.A.S. Shri Bhatikar reiterated this demand to the State Government last April. He has also suggested several measures to improve efficiency and reduce corruption in the State Administration.

Immediate measures need to be taken to impose discipline and create a work culture in our Government offices. The Chief Minister in his Budget speech last March proposed to establish an Institute for Administrative Careers. This is a good initiative and it can contribute significantly to improve the quality of Public Administration in Goa. Whilst the Institute is being created and as a first step, rules should be prescribed on how to deal with files, time limit at various stages and a system of accountability. Periodical Refresher courses should be conducted for all staff on behavior, motivation, and other aspects of Public Administration. Such provisions exist in several States of the country.

·        Some time ago I had requested the Indian Council of Cultural Relations (ICCR) to establish a Chair in Hindi and Indian Contemporary Culture at an University level Institute in Lisbon. The People’s Republic of China has the Institute Confucius in Portugal, just as the UK has the British Council, Germany the Goethe Institute. France the Alliance Francaise but there is no such organization from India. The Portuguese Government promotes the study of Portuguese language and culture in Goa and elsewhere in India, but there is no presence of India at all in the academic circles of Portugal. Acceding to my request, the ICCR has now created a Chair in Hindi and Indian Contemporary Culture to be established in Lisbon. Our Embassy in Portugal is in the process of identifying a suitable academic institution where the Chair will be set up.

·        Every State runs one or more Guest Houses in New Delhi and the people of the concerned State are employed and given preference for jobs there. Goa is the only State in the country which is lacking in this regard. The present Goa Sadan is run entirely by non Goans and nobody speaks Konkani there. “Goenkarancho Ekvot”, the organization which represents Goans in New Delhi, has pointed out that though the new Goa Niwas is to be inaugurated shortly, up to now, jobs in our Goa Niwas have not been advertised nor any recruitment, if done, has been made public. “Goenkarancho Ekvot”, has taken up this matter with the State Government and has demanded that jobs at the Goa Sadan and at the new Goa Niwas should be allotted to Goans as per their qualifications and the requirements of the two State Guest Houses. They have a list of Goans who are prepared to take up these jobs immediately. The demand of “Goenkarancho Ekvot” is justified and should be considered sympathetically and expeditiously. Goans living in Delhi as well as Goans visiting Delhi should feel at home whenever they are at our State Guest Houses.