Over 28k Indians died abroad in last 3 years: Centre

Telangana: More than 28000 Indians have died in different countries in the last three years. In a written reply, Minister of State for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan told Lok Sabha that in the last three years, 24,278 Indians died from natural causes, 1,622 from traffic accidents, 686 from occupational hazards/accidents, 1,763 from suicide, and 136 from violence/murder.

Most of the deaths were caused by natural causes like old age, and medical illnesses, while a few deaths were also reported due to traffic accidents, occupational hazards/accidents, violence, and suicide.

Minister was replying to a question from YSRCP MP Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu. The MP had asked about crimes against Indian citizens living abroad.

"The safety and security of Indians abroad are one of the foremost priorities for the Government of India. Our missions and posts remain vigilant and closely monitor any such untoward incident. Such incidents are immediately taken up with the concerned authorities of the host country to ensure that the cases are properly investigated and the perpetrators are punished", the Minister said.

He said that the issues of Indian students abroad are also raised during meetings with Government officials of the countries concerned, including at the highest levels as appropriate, and takes all measures to safeguard their interests and welfare.

Missions/Posts abroad

According to the Ministry of External Affairs, from time to time, the government receives representations for help from Indian nationals and/or their family/relatives regarding issues faced by them in the countries of their residence. To enable Indian nationals abroad to make representations of their grievances, the government has provided various channels like calls, walk-ins, e-mails, WhatsApp, social media, 24x7 helplines, MADAD portal, and Open Houses.

As soon as the information about an Indian national in distress is received by an Indian Mission/Post, it immediately gets in touch with the Indian national, local Foreign Office, and other concerned local authorities, as the case may be, to ascertain the facts of the case, confirm his or her Indian nationality and ensure his or her welfare. Any issue about Indians abroad is dealt with by Missions/Posts on a priority basis and distressed Indian nationals are provided all possible consular assistance, including emergency medical care and boarding/lodging, whenever required.

The Indian Community Welfare Fund (ICWF) is set up in Indian Missions/Posts abroad for assisting overseas Indian nationals in distress situations on a means-tested basis in deserving cases. The support extended under ICWF includes financial assistance to Indian nationals for legal aid as well as travel documents/air tickets.