Saudi Arabia deports about 30,000 Indian nationals every year for violating the country's rules and regulations, an Indian diplomat in the Kingdom told a media outlet. Most violations are related to visa and residency permits (Iqama) “as part of the normal law enforcement process”, said R.N. Vats, second secretary at the Embassy of India in Riyadh, in an email statement to Arabian Business. Saudi authorities conduct regular checks on the houses and workplaces of foreign workers to ensure local residency laws are followed. Violators are arrested and placed in deportation centers across the Kingdom, where they are fingerprinted and cleared from any suspected criminal activities before they are sent back home in coordination with their respective embassies. “The Embassy of India in Riyadh and the Consulate General of India in Jeddah have been visiting deportation centers regularly to issue emergency certificates. “The individuals concerned are thereafter deported by the Saudi authorities,” Vats added. Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs has recently set up a special fund to provide emergency assistance to Indian workers destitute abroad, including medical service, food, and air tickets. According to Arabian Business, the ministry said last week that 3,095 Indians are serving jail time in the Gulf countries, including 1,361 in the United Arab Emirates and 1,266 in Saudi Arabia. Available official records show that “3,685,058 Indians are currently working and living in the Gulf countries, meaning those in jail only account for 0.08 percent of the Indian expatriate population in the region,” Arabian Business reported.
