Indian expat in distress? MEA's NRI welfare fund has Dh300m surplus that may help you

Abu Dhabi: Indian expats in distress in the UAE and globally, who qualify for financial assistance from a welfare fund for Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), stand to benefit from a Dh300 million surplus in the fund, Gulf News can reveal.

The Indian Community Welfare Fund (ICWF) under the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) holds a substantial balance of Rs 704.56 crore (around Dh300m) as of March 31, according to information recently disclosed by the ministry in reply to a query filed under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.

The Emigration Policy and Welfare Division under the MEA revealed this information on July 14 in response to an RTI query filed by Kerala-based RTI campaigner K Govindan Nampoothiry.

“The disclosure comes at a time when financial assistance to NRIs is a pressing concern in many countries,” Nampoothiry said while sharing the details exclusively with Gulf News.

The query sought details about the utilisation of ICWF funds. “The Emigration wing clarified that no budget is allocated for ICWF, and funds are raised by levying a service charge on consular, passport, and visa services provided by Indian Missions abroad,” he said.

Launched in 2009, the ICWF is aimed at assisting overseas Indian nationals in times of distress and emergency in the ‘most deserving cases’ on a ‘means-tested basis’.

It was launched at Indian missions in 18 countries by levying a service fee for every service offered by them and expanded to 43 countries by 2011. Voluntary donation from community members is the secondary source of funding for ICWF.

According to the MEA, ICWF has been a critical support in emergency evacuation of Indian nationals from conflict zones, countries affected by natural disasters, and other challenging situations.

In view of its immense utility, ICWF was extended to all Indian missions and posts abroad in 2017.

An endorsement is mandatory in the passport and relevant database of ICWF beneficiaries.

Year-wise utilisation of the total fund under the MEA, as per the details provided by the ministry in response to the RTI application, is as follows:

2020: Rs 137.25 crore

2021: Rs 37.07 crore

2022: Rs 69.20 crore

2023: Rs 61.28 crore

2024: Rs 62.47 crore

In the UAE, the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi and the Indian Consulate in Dubai charge Dh8 per consular service such as passport service or attestation service offered via outsourced service providers BLS International and SGIVS Global Services respectively. Foreigners applying for Indian visas and OCI card applicants must pay Dh11.

When contacted by Gulf News, the amount collected, spent, or currently available under the ICWF in the UAE was not immediately made available by the embassy.

The latest figure available for the closing balance in the ICWF in the UAE is Rs 42.71 crore (around Dh18m) as of March 2024. This is as per the data revealed by the ministry at the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian Parliament, in July 2024.

According to figures earlier released by the embassy and reported by Gulf News, between 2017 and 2019, the Indian missions in the UAE processed around 400,000 services annually (about 1,600 per working day), and this increased to 1,584,174 services from 2022 to 2024 (about 1,760 per working day).

Based on the Dh8 ICWF fee per service, it can be calculated that the missions collected roughly Dh9.6 million during 2017–2019 and Dh12.67 million from 2022–2024.  No similar data is available for 2020 and 2021.

As per the data revealed at the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian Parliament, on July 20, 2023, the fund spent in the UAE between 2018 and 2022 is as follows:

2018: Rs 6.32 crore

2019: Rs 7.99 crore

2020: Rs 5.62 crore

2021: Rs 5.23 crore

2022: Rs 8.85 crore

In 2024, Rs 19.19 lakh was spent just for repatriating the mortal remains from the UAE, the ministry revealed at the Lok Sabha.

The embassy revealed to Gulf News that more than 18,000 Indian expats in distress in the UAE have benefitted from the ICWF in the past five years.

“From 2020 to 2024, a total of 18,072 Indian nationals benefitted from assistance provided under ICWF,” the mission stated.

The embassy noted that the Pravasi Bharatiya Sahayata Kendra (PBSK), currently operating at the Indian Consulate in Dubai, is also funded through ICWF.

“The PBSK acts as a crucial resource centre for the Indians in the UAE, offering a wide array of support services to ensure their well-being and address their concerns. Its services include a 24/7 toll-free helpline, grievance redressal, legal, financial, and personal counselling, and awareness campaigns,” the mission explained.

The beneficiaries here have largely been stranded or distressed Indian nationals, who seek repatriation to India and transportation of mortal remains of Indian nationals who died in the UAE, the embassy said.

According to the mission, the following table outlines the categories of beneficiaries who received assistance under the ICWF between 2020 and 2024, based on the type of distress or emergency they faced:

Assistance for repatriation: 5,029

Assistance prior to repatriation: 3,981

Assistance to domestic workers/labourers for visa cancellation, exit formalities, legal assistance: 5,019

Transportation of mortal remains to India: 559

Emergency medical assistance: 105

Other assistance: 3,369

In the UAE, Indian expats in distress can contact the embassy or the consulate via PBSK in Dubai (toll-free helpline: 80046342) for assistance.

According to the MEA, ICWF guidelines were revised to make them more broad-based and expand the scope of welfare measures that can be extended through the Fund in 2017.

“They are expected to provide Indian missions and posts abroad greater flexibility in swiftly addressing requests for assistance by overseas Indian nationals,” MEA says on its website.

With the new guidelines, Indian missions can extend legal assistance to those who have committed minor offences, workers who are wrongly implicated, stranded seamen, students facing legal issues, and Indian women who are stranded and fighting cases of marital disputes, according to details released by the missions in the UAE in 2018.

The expanded guidelines authorised the missions to allocate up to $10,000 (Dh36,780) per eligible case to assist overseas Indians facing legal difficulties not attributable to their own actions, Gulf News had reported.

Emergency medical assistance up to $5,000 (Dh18,350) can be given for victims of major accidents, life-threatening medical conditions, and serious disability, if the employer is unwilling to meet the expenses and the family is unable to meet the cost.

The subsistence allowance of Dh40 per day for 30 days for distressed individuals was extended up to 60 days on a means-tested basis. School fees, electricity fees, etc. are given for distressed Indians in the most deserving cases.

New provisions also included supporting community activities such as Indian cultural programmes, promotion of Indian languages and art forms, welfare activities for Indian students, etc.

The fund had also supported the establishment of a crematorium managed by the Indian Association Sharjah after the first phase of its expansion back in 2012.

According to MEA, ICWF is maintained on a global basis and funds can be transferred between missions and posts. “For effective management, the Head of Missions/Posts regularly monitor the administrative and financial management of the Fund and regular Audit of funds is carried out as per the prescribed procedures by the authorities concerned,” the ministry had stated.

However, Nampoothiry expressed concerns about the substantial balance remaining in the ICWF, questioning its utilisation for the welfare of NRIs and the effectiveness of fund management across various countries.

He said there was a need to further simplify the guidelines to help a greater number of deserving overseas Indians in multiple countries and called for more transparency and accountability in the administration of the fund under the MEA.