<p>As concerns grow over Kuwait expat bill that could&nbsp;force out lakhs of Indian workers from the country, India has discussed the matter with the country highlighting the "well regarded" role of Indians.</p>

<p>MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava in his weekly presser said," We are closely following the developments in Kuwait. &nbsp;This matter has been discussed between FMs of India and Kuwait. We share excellent bilateral ties which are deeply rooted in people to people linkages."</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/new-expat-quota-bill-in-kuwait-could-force-out-nearly-800000-indians-311168">New expat quota bill in Kuwait could force out nearly 800,000 Indians</a></strong></p>

<p>"The Indian community in Kuwait is well-regarded in Kuwait and elsewhere in the Gulf region and their contributions are well recognised. We have shared our expectations that Kuwait’s decision will take into account."</p>

<p>The Kuwait expat draft law calls to introduce a quota for expats in the country so as to reduce the percentage of foreigners in the country, now more than locals in the country. The law stood the test of constitutionality a few days ago in the Kuwaiti Parliament. &nbsp;</p>

<p>Indians form the largest expatriate community in Kuwait with over the presence of one million Indian community members. The law aims to put a quota of 15 per cent&nbsp;for Indian expats in the country with respect to the overall population.</p>

<p>The bill, once passed by the Parliament will not only force many Indians out from the west Asian country but will also impact remittances. The worst-impacted will be the southern state of Kerala, from where a lot of people live in Kuwait.</p>

<p>The development comes even as COVID has had a major impact on economies of west Asian countries due to the collapse in crude oil prices. &nbsp;These countries have been trying to reorient the economies.</p>

<p>Recently foreign secretary Harsh V Shringla said Gulf is feeling the impact as cost of energy comes down, as a result, Indians coming back but India sees this "as a temporary phenomenon" as production picks up "they will require the expertise of our expats".</p>

<p>Gulf countries while are not keen on any foreigners coming now amidst COVID-19, are keen to have Indian healthcare workers deal with the ongoing global pandemic.&nbsp;</p>


As concerns grow over Kuwait expat bill that could force out lakhs of Indian workers from the country, India has discussed the matter with the country highlighting the "well regarded" role of Indians.

As concerns grow over Kuwait expat bill that could force out lakhs of Indian workers from the country, India has discussed the matter with the country highlighting the "well regarded" role of Indians. MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava in his weekly presser said," We are closely following the developments in Kuwait. This matter has been discussed between FMs of India and Kuwait. We share excellent bilateral ties which are deeply rooted in people to people linkages." Also read | New expat quota bill in Kuwait could force out nearly 800,000 Indians "The Indian community in Kuwait is well-regarded in Kuwait and elsewhere in the Gulf region and their contributions are well recognised. We have shared our expectations that Kuwait’s decision will take into account." The Kuwait expat draft law calls to introduce a quota for expats in the country so as to reduce the percentage of foreigners in the country, now more than locals in the country. The law stood the test of constitutionality a few days ago in the Kuwaiti Parliament. Indians form the largest expatriate community in Kuwait with over the presence of one million Indian community members. The law aims to put a quota of 15 per cent for Indian expats in the country with respect to the overall population. The bill, once passed by the Parliament will not only force many Indians out from the west Asian country but will also impact remittances. The worst-impacted will be the southern state of Kerala, from where a lot of people live in Kuwait. The development comes even as COVID has had a major impact on economies of west Asian countries due to the collapse in crude oil prices. These countries have been trying to reorient the economies. Recently foreign secretary Harsh V Shringla said Gulf is feeling the impact as cost of energy comes down, as a result, Indians coming back but India sees this "as a temporary phenomenon" as production picks up "they will require the expertise of our expats". Gulf countries while are not keen on any foreigners coming now amidst COVID-19, are keen to have Indian healthcare workers deal with the ongoing global pandemic.

Kuwait expat quota Bill: New Delhi shares its expectations, highlights role of Indian community

Nearly 800,000 Indians may be asked to leave Kuwait soon. The Kuwait government could pass a new expat quota bill to reduce the number of foreign workers. WION's Palki Sharma tells you more.

Gravitas: Nearly 8,00,000 Indians could be forced to leave Kuwait

<p>Kuwait may soon ask foreign workers to leave and in the process&nbsp;nearly 800,000 Indians could be forced out.</p>

<p>Kuwait's national assembly committee has approved a draft expat quota bill. It&nbsp;is not only a major blow to Indians and their families living in Kuwait but&nbsp;also to their dependents back home. The anti-expat rhetoric in Kuwait has spiked since the beginning of the pandemic.</p>

<p>Government officials have repeatedly called for reduction in the number of foreign workers,&nbsp;&nbsp;so that more jobs are available to the local population.</p>

<p>The first inklings of the bill came to light last month after&nbsp;Prime minister Sheikh Sabah Al Khalid Al Sabah proposed reducing the number of expats from 70 per cent to 30 per cent, ou of the 4.8 million people living in Kuwait, expats account for 3.3 million.</p>

<p>It has not come as a surprise that the bill's first target were Indians.&nbsp;There are around 1.4 million Indians in Kuwait and that is a huge number with&nbsp;one in two expats living in Kuwait an Indian.</p>

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/gravitas-nearly-800000-indians-could-be-forced-to-leave-kuwait-311230/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

<p>According to the new bill, Indians will not be allowed to exceed 15 per cent of the population&nbsp;which means an immediate exodus of close to 800,000 Indians from manual labourers to doctors, Indians work in all capacities in Kuwait will have to leave the country.</p>

<p>Nearly 28,000 Indians work for the Kuwaiti government. They work in government hospitals, national oil companies and even in universities.</p>

<p>In an extreme step, they could all be replaced by locals. However, most of the Indians are employed in the private sector. There are bout 523,000 workers in this sector. They have about 160,000 dependents living in Kuwait and close to 60,000 Indian kids are studying in 23 Indian schools across the country.</p>

<p>If the new bill is passed&nbsp; - it will have a devastating effect on their lives&nbsp;but, the low-skilled Indian workers will be the worst hit with&nbsp;Kuwait likely to target them intensely in the first phase of its demographic purge.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Assembly speaker Marzouq al-Ghanem said: "The state will focus on skilled migrants rather than labourers." So, the 1.3 million foreigners, who are either illiterate or can merely read and write will be sent back.</p>

<p>Indian labourers in Kuwait send money to their poor families in India.&nbsp;In 2018 alone&nbsp;India received close to $4.8 billion&nbsp;as remittances. As a consequence of this new expat bill poor families in India will suffer.</p>

<p>Their source of income will be gone. During the pandemic, many of these Indian labourers in Kuwait were laid-off and&nbsp;as foreigners&nbsp;they were not eligible for economic relief, so thousands registered for repatriation to India.</p>

<p>For those still in Kuwait, the future is now even more uncertain.</p>

<p>The problem is Kuwait and other Gulf countries want to put their citizens to work. Gone are the days of lucrative subsidies to locals. The excessive reliance on oil has undone the Gulf economies.</p>

<p>Oil contributes 90 per cent to Kuwait government's revenue which&nbsp;has collapsed as the oil prices remain at historic lows.</p>

<p>There is no money left to give as hand-outs to its citizens. They must now work, but the jobs are held by foreigners. So the government is pushing foreigners out in a fight to keep its local population alive.</p>


Kuwait may soon ask foreign workers to leave and in the process nearly 800,000 Indians could be forced out. Kuwait's national assembly committee has approved a draft expat quota bill.

Kuwait may soon ask foreign workers to leave and in the process nearly 800,000 Indians could be forced out. Kuwait's national assembly committee has approved a draft expat quota bill. It is not only a major blow to Indians and their families living in Kuwait but also to their dependents back home. The anti-expat rhetoric in Kuwait has spiked since the beginning of the pandemic. Government officials have repeatedly called for reduction in the number of foreign workers, so that more jobs are available to the local population. The first inklings of the bill came to light last month after Prime minister Sheikh Sabah Al Khalid Al Sabah proposed reducing the number of expats from 70 per cent to 30 per cent, ou of the 4.8 million people living in Kuwait, expats account for 3.3 million. It has not come as a surprise that the bill's first target were Indians. There are around 1.4 million Indians in Kuwait and that is a huge number with one in two expats living in Kuwait an Indian. According to the new bill, Indians will not be allowed to exceed 15 per cent of the population which means an immediate exodus of close to 800,000 Indians from manual labourers to doctors, Indians work in all capacities in Kuwait will have to leave the country. Nearly 28,000 Indians work for the Kuwaiti government. They work in government hospitals, national oil companies and even in universities. In an extreme step, they could all be replaced by locals. However, most of the Indians are employed in the private sector. There are bout 523,000 workers in this sector. They have about 160,000 dependents living in Kuwait and close to 60,000 Indian kids are studying in 23 Indian schools across the country. If the new bill is passed - it will have a devastating effect on their lives but, the low-skilled Indian workers will be the worst hit with Kuwait likely to target them intensely in the first phase of its demographic purge. Assembly speaker Marzouq al-Ghanem said: "The state will focus on skilled migrants rather than labourers." So, the 1.3 million foreigners, who are either illiterate or can merely read and write will be sent back. Indian labourers in Kuwait send money to their poor families in India. In 2018 alone India received close to $4.8 billion as remittances. As a consequence of this new expat bill poor families in India will suffer. Their source of income will be gone. During the pandemic, many of these Indian labourers in Kuwait were laid-off and as foreigners they were not eligible for economic relief, so thousands registered for repatriation to India. For those still in Kuwait, the future is now even more uncertain. The problem is Kuwait and other Gulf countries want to put their citizens to work. Gone are the days of lucrative subsidies to locals. The excessive reliance on oil has undone the Gulf economies. Oil contributes 90 per cent to Kuwait government's revenue which has collapsed as the oil prices remain at historic lows. There is no money left to give as hand-outs to its citizens. They must now work, but the jobs are held by foreigners. So the government is pushing foreigners out in a fight to keep its local population alive.

New expat quota bill in Kuwait could force out nearly 800,000 Indians

<p>As many as 800,000 Indians could be forced to leave Kuwait after the country's National Assembly has approved the draft expat quota bill.</p>

<p>The National Assembly's legal and legislative committee who approved the draft said the bill "is in line with the Kuwaiti constitution and laws", reported Gulf Business.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/youll-be-punished-if-you-dont-wear-a-mask-in-kuwait-and-qatar-299295">You'll be punished if you don't wear a mask in Kuwait and Qatar</a></strong></p>

<p>The draft of the bill said Indians, country's largest foreign community, must not exceed 15 per cent of Kuwait's population.</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/vande-bharat-operation-177-indians-brought-back-from-kuwait">Vande Bharat operation: 177 Indians brought back from Kuwait</a></strong></p>

<p>The bill that will now be sent to an expert committee to study the legislation, if approved will impact 800,000 Indians who currently reside in the Gulf country.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;At least 1.45 million Indians currently reside in Kuwait.&nbsp;</p>

<p>It has also called for bringing down the number of Egyptians residing in the country to 10 per cent, Times of India reported.</p>

<p>After India, Egypt is the second-largest expat community in Kuwait.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Sabah, last month, said the nation would reduce expat numbers to 30 per cent of the country's population, which is presently 70 per cent, impacting 2.5 million people.</p>

<p>Already, Kuwaiti MPs have asked the government to replace all expat jobs in the government sector&nbsp;within one year.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In June, Kuwait announced the ban on expatriates working in state-owned Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) and its subsidiaries for the year 2020-21.</p>


As many as 800,000 Indians could be forced to leave Kuwait after the country's National Assembly has approved the draft expat quota bill. The National Assembly's legal and legislative committee who approved the draft said the bill "is in line with the Kuwaiti constitution and laws", reported Gulf Business.

As many as 800,000 Indians could be forced to leave Kuwait after the country's National Assembly has approved the draft expat quota bill. The National Assembly's legal and legislative committee who approved the draft said the bill "is in line with the Kuwaiti constitution and laws", reported Gulf Business. Also read | You'll be punished if you don't wear a mask in Kuwait and Qatar The draft of the bill said Indians, country's largest foreign community, must not exceed 15 per cent of Kuwait's population. Also read | Vande Bharat operation: 177 Indians brought back from Kuwait The bill that will now be sent to an expert committee to study the legislation, if approved will impact 800,000 Indians who currently reside in the Gulf country. At least 1.45 million Indians currently reside in Kuwait. It has also called for bringing down the number of Egyptians residing in the country to 10 per cent, Times of India reported. After India, Egypt is the second-largest expat community in Kuwait. Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Sabah, last month, said the nation would reduce expat numbers to 30 per cent of the country's population, which is presently 70 per cent, impacting 2.5 million people. Already, Kuwaiti MPs have asked the government to replace all expat jobs in the government sector within one year. In June, Kuwait announced the ban on expatriates working in state-owned Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) and its subsidiaries for the year 2020-21.

Kuwait nods draft bill that will push 800,000 Indians out of the country

Kuwait National Assembly’s legal and legislative committee has approved the draft expat quota bill, according to which Indians should not exceed 15% of the population. The bill will now be transferred to the respective committee so that a comprehensive plan is created, according to reports.

Fineprint: Kuwait approves bill to expel Indians, Bill targets Kuwait's expat population

<p>The death sentence of 15 Indians, incarcerated in Kuwaiti jails, have been commuted to life imprisonment by the emir of Kuwait, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj said Saturday.</p>

<p>Swaraj said the emir had also ordered that the sentences of 119 Indian nationals be reduced.</p>

<p>The minister thanked the emir of Kuwait for his &quot;kind&quot; gesture.</p>

<p>In a series of tweets, she said &quot;the Emir of Kuwait has been pleased to commute the sentence of 15 Indian nationals from death to life imprisonment&quot;.</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en">HH the Emir of Kuwait has been pleased to commute the sentence of 15 Indian nationals from death to life imprisonment. /1</p>
&mdash; Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) <a href="https://twitter.com/SushmaSwaraj/status/914044605443670016?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 30, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en">HH the Emir has further directed the reduction in sentence of 119 Indian nationals. /2</p>
&mdash; Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) <a href="https://twitter.com/SushmaSwaraj/status/914044707377889280?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 30, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en">We are grateful to the Emir of Kuwait for this kind gesture./3</p>
&mdash; Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) <a href="https://twitter.com/SushmaSwaraj/status/914044768941785089?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 30, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<p>Indian mission in Kuwait will provide all possible assistance to the Indian nationals being released from the prison, she tweeted.</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Indian mission in Kuwait will provide all possible assistance to the Indian nationals being released from the prison. /4</p>
&mdash; Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) <a href="https://twitter.com/SushmaSwaraj/status/914044829461385218?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 30, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<p>However, it was not clear that under what charges these Indians were put behind bars.&nbsp;</p>


External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj said the emir of Kuwait had also ordered that the sentences of 119 Indian nationals be reduced

The death sentence of 15 Indians, incarcerated in Kuwaiti jails, have been commuted to life imprisonment by the emir of Kuwait, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj said Saturday. Swaraj said the emir had also ordered that the sentences of 119 Indian nationals be reduced. The minister thanked the emir of Kuwait for his "kind" gesture. In a series of tweets, she said "the Emir of Kuwait has been pleased to commute the sentence of 15 Indian nationals from death to life imprisonment". HH the Emir of Kuwait has been pleased to commute the sentence of 15 Indian nationals from death to life imprisonment. /1 — Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) September 30, 2017 × HH the Emir has further directed the reduction in sentence of 119 Indian nationals. /2 — Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) September 30, 2017 × We are grateful to the Emir of Kuwait for this kind gesture./3 — Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) September 30, 2017 × Indian mission in Kuwait will provide all possible assistance to the Indian nationals being released from the prison, she tweeted. Indian mission in Kuwait will provide all possible assistance to the Indian nationals being released from the prison. /4 — Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) September 30, 2017 × However, it was not clear that under what charges these Indians were put behind bars.

Death sentences of 15 Indians commuted to life terms in Kuwait: Swaraj