9 Indians stranded in UAE after accepting ‘job offers’ through WhatsApp

News Network
July 21, 2019

Dubai, Jul 21: Nine Indians have been stranded in the UAE after accepting fake job offers through social media, according to a media report on Sunday.

The men from Kerala, who are currently stranded in Al Ain and Ajman, claim they met the agent named Shafeeq on WhatsApp and paid up to Rs 70,000 for visit visas to the UAE, a report said.

The incident comes months after the Consulate General of India in Dubai asked job seekers to stay away from fraudulent job advertisements luring Indians to the UAE.

The Consulate said “job seekers should not fall prey to such bogus job offers and in case of any doubt, may seek clarification from the Consulate.” Fazil, one of the victims from Malappuram district in Kerala, said that he received the job offer on WhatsApp.

“A WhatsApp message that promised jobs in the UAE within 15 days was being widely shared in Kerala, and I also received the forwarded message. I really thought it was genuine as many people were showing interest,” he was quoted as saying in the report.

Fazil said that he had a conversation with the agent who convinced him of a job in a supermarket in Al Ain.

“He told me I will get Dh1,200 (Rs 22,496) as monthly salary and free food and accommodation. I was going through tough times, and thought it would be a good start for me,” said Fazil, who is a qualified technician.

Fazil said he mortgaged his mother’s gold ornaments to cough up the money and cannot return home without a job.

Mohammed Rafeeq, 30, another victim from Kozhikode in Kerala, said he borrowed Rs 70,000 from friends and family for the job.

“Nine people including myself managed to pay up. And the agent formed a separate WhatsApp group for nine of us and we were communicating with each other,” he said, adding the agent told them that they would be travelling together to the UAE.

But as soon as they landed in Abu Dhabi on July 15, the men said they realised they got duped.

Rafeeq said a local agent named Shameer met them at the airport and split the men into two groups. “Four people were sent to Ajman and five of us of were taken to Al Ain. When asked about our jobs, he said the supermarket official is in jail and hence they will have to find new jobs for us. We immediately knew we were in trouble,” Rafeeq was quoted as saying by the paper.

Indian embassy in Abu Dhabi has stepped in and have offered to assist in sending the men home.

Rafeeq said he and his friends are surviving on the allowance given by the embassy.

“We have repeatedly highlighted the need for ECR passport holders to not come to UAE on visit visa for employment purpose,” Ambassador Navdeep Singh Suri told the paper.

Smita Pant, Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassy said they have started pushing for legal action against unscrupulous agents in India.

“We have reported about 40 such cases to Indian authorities and police investigations are on. That is important to deter these illegal agents from duping more people,” the official said.

Pant said the embassy is encouraging victims to file a police case against the agents.

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News Network
February 2,2020

Thrissur, Feb 2: The Kerala government on Saturday said the condition of the medical student, kept in an isolation ward in Thrissur after testing positive for the novel coronavirus is satisfactory and that three people have been arrested for spreading false information on social media about the disease.

The woman, who tested positive, is a student of Wuhan university and is undergoing treatment at the Thrissur Medical College Hospital.

"The health status of the student who tested positive for coronavirus remains satisfactory.

The hospital authorities have confirmed that the health condition of all symptomatic persons under isolation in hospitals are "stable", a bulletin said.

Health Minister K K Shailaja said Kerala has strengthened surveillance and control measures against the epidemic, which has been declared by WHO as a global emergency,

She told reporters here that three people have been arrested for spreading false information about those who had arrived in the state from coronavirusa affected countries and are under home surveillance.

Six others had forwarded the posts and the cyber cell was probing the matter, Shailaja said.

The minister had earlier warned that strong action would be taken against those putting out false news on the disease.

Police said Sabari was arrested on Friday and released on bail, while two others-- Shafi and Siraj were arrested on Saturday.

Two cases have been registered in two police stations in Thrissur in this connection, they said.

A medical bulletin said that till date, 1793 people who travelled from coronavirus affected countries have been identified and placed under surveillance.

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News Network
June 21,2020

Kannur, Jun 21: Customs sleuths on Sunday seized 432 grams of gold worth around Rs 20 lakh from a passenger who arrived at Kannur International Airport from Dubai in Fly Dubai flight, scheduled under Vande Bharat Mission.

Customs Assistant Commissioner E Vikas-led team seized the smuggled gold from the passenger Usman of Malappuram district and detained him, sources said.

The seized gold was kept in his inner-wear.

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News Network
June 3,2020

Mangaluru, Jun 3: Cyclone Nisarga did not land in Karnataka and has passed its border with heavy rains and strong winds, said an official on Wednesday.

However rains continued to lash parts of coastal Karnataka. There was no report of any casualty, the official added.

"It has already passed. We have not got any reports of fatalities. A heavy rain was expected and the deputy commissioners were alerted. Fishermen too were warned," said Karnataka State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA) Principal Secretary T K Anil Kumar.

Kumar said Nisarga's actual landing is in Maharashtra and the warning was given for that state and Gujarat.

"In the fringe proportion (of Karnataka), high winds were expected and fishermen were warned not to venture into the sea," he said.

Kumar said the department interacted with the deputy commissioners of Belagavi, Uttara Kannada, Udupi, Dakshina Kannada, Chikkamagaluru and Shivamogga and alerted them about heavy rains.

Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre Director Srinivas Reddy said the department has kept four National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF) teams on standby in Mangaluru and Kodagu for any eventuality.

The teams have been mobilized from Guntur in Andhra Pradesh.

"More rain is predicted in coastal districts. Wind speed too will be more in coastal areas," said Reddy.

According to a Met Department official, the track of Nisarga is expected to be 200-400km off Karnataka coast.

"Sudden wind speed had been reported along the coast. We had issued port warnings," said the official.

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