KUWAIT: The India government has issued an order yesterday banning overseas recruitment of nurses by private agencies stating that only an authorized government agency can conduct nursing recruitments. The order becomes effective from April 30, 2015.
According to the government order, nursing recruitments to a foreign country from India can be done only through a government agency from respective states. From Kerala, NORKA Roots and Overseas Development and Employment Promotion Council (ODEPC) will be entrusted with the job. Currently, recruitments to Saudi Arabia are done through ODEPC.
The new decision by the India government is expected to put an end to large-scale corruption and cheating by private recruiting agents who recruit nurses from India to various foreign countries including Kuwait after taking huge sums as bribes and commission. Several reports had appeared in local and Indian media recently that agents in Kuwait in collusion with their counterparts in India allegedly take huge sums from candidates ranging from KD 5,000 to KD 12,000 for nursing jobs in Kuwait. Many of the nurses reportedly lost their job after working in Kuwait for a few months.