Indian expat number crosses 400,000 mark

By Arvind Nair
THE Indian expatriate population in Qatar has soared to a staggering 419,096, more than double the number of local people.
The figure was exact as of July 31 considering that it was given by HE the Minister of State for Interior Affairs and Cabinet member Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa al-Thani yesterday when he received India’s Ambassador Dr George Joseph.
HE the minister joked that the number would have gone up further since that date.
He told the ambassador that Indians constituted the largest expatriate community and it gave the least problems to the state.
Talking highly about the community, HE the minister said the rising trend of Indian expatriate population showed their acceptability by the Qatari authorities and people.
The ambassador was making one of his farewell calls. He is slated to leave Qatar in October, having been posted as India’s next ambassador to Lebanon. He will be replaced in Doha by Deepa Gopalan Wadhwa, currently India’s envoy in Sweden.
The minister also told the ambassador that a new mechanism was being put in place that could solve most of the labour-related problems. The ambassador, however, did not reveal any details.
The two countries last year signed an additional protocol to the 25-year old Indo-Qatar labour agreement and it is expected to be implemented some time soon.
The additional protocol is also expected to remarkably improve the welfare of Indian workers in Qatar. The protocol provides for regular meetings by a joint committee which is mandated to discuss all issues related to workers.
There are an estimated 5mn Indian workers all over the world. More than 90% of these are in the Gulf and Southeast Asia.
In 2006, about 677,000 workers went from India with emigration clearance. Of them, 76,000 came to Qatar, according to figures available with the Indian overseas affairs ministry.
Not all Indians arriving in Qatar would have taken the emigration clearance since many sections of the population are exempt from such a formality.
The news of the surge in the Indian expatriate population in Qatar comes in the wake of reports that the Gulf was losing its charm for Indians because of economic boom in their country, an appreciating rupee and inflation in the Gulf countries.
With India’s economic growth rate near 9%, there are more opportunities for professionals in different sectors in India. The major attraction for many Indian youngsters moving to the Gulf countries used to be higher salaries. But the employment boom has initiated a strong salary growth back in India while the sky-rocketing rents in the Gulf have taken the shine out of Gulf jobs.
HR professionals in Qatar have said that it is almost impossible to recruit professionals from India these days. The high inflation in Qatar has meant that people are finding it difficult to save anything substantial from their salaries.