Month: April 2025

Advisory on overcharging by agents for overseas recruitment, offering fake overseas jobs and illegal recruitment

Advisory on overcharging by agents for overseas recruitment, offering fake overseas jobs and illegal recruitment

It has been noticed that there has been a huge rise in the number of overseas job seekers being cheated by unregistered recruitment agents by fake job offers and also overcharging to the tune of Rs. 2-5 lakhs.  These unregistered/illegal agents operate without obtaining license from the Ministry of External Affairs, which is mandatory for any recruitment for work abroad. It is reported that many illegal agents operate through Facebook, Whatsapp, text message and other such mediums.  These agencies provide little or no details of their whereabouts and contacts. They usually communicate only through Whatsapp, making it difficult to ascertain the location and identity of the caller & genuineness of the job offer. Such agents also lure workers to work in difficult and life threatening conditions. Such cases are being reported for recruitment to work in several East European Countries, some of the Gulf countries, Central Asian countries, Israel, Canada, Myanmar and Lao People’s Democratic Republic.

A valid job offers come along with Employment Contract duly signed by Foreign Employer, recruitment Agent and the emigrant worker. The Employment Contract must mention term & conditions of the job being offered and the salary and other emoluments. Valid job offers must allow the worker to emigrate on strength of Employment or Work visa or other similar visa except tourist visa. It may be noted that tourist visa should only be used for the purpose of tourism.  Normally, reputed Foreign Employers provide for cost of airfare, boarding & lodging and insurance cover.

Emigrant workers should make themselves aware of local conditions of the destination country. The information may be obtained by attending Pre-Departure Orientation Training (PDOT) Centers or from the Community Welfare Wing of the concerned Indian Embassy in the destination country. Government of India makes it mandatory for registered recruitment agents to purchase Pravasi Bharatiya Bima Yojana (PBBY) for the migrant workers which provides various benefits including Rs. 10 Lakh sum assured on death cases and work related injury and medical expenses with one time premium (Rs. 275 for the cover of two years and Rs. 375 for the cover of three years).

In view of the above, persons seeking jobs abroad are requested to use the safe and legal services of registered Recruiting Agents (RA) only. All registered RAs are issued a license number which is prominently displayed in their office premises and in their advertisements, including newspapers and social media. Prospective emigrants are advised to cross check the genuineness of the RA by visiting the government website www.emigrate.gov.in External website that opens in a new window and click the link “List of active RA”. As per the Emigration Act 1983, no recruiting agent shall collect from the prospective emigrant the service charges more than Rs. 30,000 + GST (18%), in respect of services provided by it to that emigrant and the recruiting agent shall issue a receipt to the emigrant for the amount collected by it in this regard. Going abroad through any other channel of recruitment involves serious risk of being defrauded of money, not landing in the promised job and difficult living conditions abroad. All unregistered agencies are being warned not to involve in overseas recruitment activities. Such activities are in violation of Emigration Act 1983 and amount to human trafficking, which is a punishable criminal offense.

For complaints & queries kindly contact:

1. Pravasi Bharatiya Sahayata Kendra (PBSK), Ministry of External Affairs
Room No. 1005, 10th Floor, Akbar Bhawan, Chanakayapuri, New Delhi 110021
Toll Free No: 1800 11 3090 (Accessible from India only)
Chargeable No. +91-11-2688-5021 (Standard long distance call charges apply)
WhatsApp No. +91-7428 3211 44/E-mail: helplinemea.gov.in

2. Office of Protector General of Emigrants, Ministry of External Affairs,
Room No. 1009, 10th Floor, Akbar Bhawan, Chanakayapuri. New Delhi 110021
Email: pgemea.gov.in / diroe1mea.gov.in

Speeches of Ambassador

Speeches of Ambassador

Ambassador’s speech at the Inauguration of International Conference titled “Artificial Intelligence and Computer Technologies: Practices, Experiences, Challenges and Prospects in Denau Institute of Entrepreneurship and Pedagogy

 

30 April, 2025

Ambassador’s remarks at Office Opening Ceremony of MSN-Remedies LLC, subsidiary of MSN Laboratories Pvt. Ltd., India April 24, 2025

30 April, 2025
Speech by Ambassador at the Inauguration of Indian Film Festival 2024 in Tashkent on December 17, 2024

17 December, 2024
Ambassador’s speech for the Community event on Friday, September 27, 2024

27 October, 2024
Ambassador’s speech at the Business Forum on Friday, September 27, 2024

27 October, 2024
Ambassador’s speech at the University of World Economy and Diplomacy, Wednesday, October 23, 2024

23 September, 2024

RTI

Right to Information

Annexure I

# Name Designation Contact Details
1 Ms. Smita Pant Ambassador amb.tashkent@mea.gov.in
2 Shri Alok Pandey Minister/PR to SCO-RATS prrats.tashkent@mea.gov.in
3 Shri Namo Narayan Meena SS& HOC hoc.tashkent@mea.gov.in
4 Shri Sitesh Kumar SS (Pol & PIC) pol.tashkent@mea.gov.in
5 Shri Rajesh Badola SS (Consular) cons.tashkent@mea.gov.in
6 Col. Vikram Raina Defence Attaché da.tashkent@mea.gov.in
7 Shri M. Srinivasan SS(ITEC)/PPS Itec.tashkent@mea.gov.in
8 Ms. Anu Rawat SS/PPS to Ambassador amboffice.tashkent@mea.gov.in
9 Shri Kirti Singh Rawat Attache (Admin& DDO) admin.tashkent@mea.gov.in
10 Shri Binod Kumar Prajapati Attaché (Comm) & Project com.tashkent@mea.gov.in
11 Shri Mohammad Adil ASO (GA) ga.tashkent@mea.gov.in
12 Shri Deepanshu ASO (Accounts) accounts.tashkent@mea.gov.in
13 Shri Puneet Yadav ASO (Pol) polsec.tashkent@mea.gov.in 
14 Shri Kishan Lal PA to SS (Pol & PIC) Info.tashkent@mea.gov.in
15 Shri Gopal Sharma PA to SS(Cons) cons.tashkent@mea.gov.in
16 Shri Dheeraj Kumar Soni ASO(Consular) cons.tashkent@mea.gov.in
17 Shri Sumesh M. Office Superintendent os.tashkent@mea.gov.in
18 Shri Surya Bhushan ASO to PR to SCO-RATS prrats.tashkent@mea.gov.in
19 Shri Vikram Singh IBSA
20 Shri Vijendra Kumar. IBSA

 

Annexure-II

Embassy of India

Tashkent

Monthly Remuneration of India Based Officers/Officials

# Sanctioned Post Number of Posts Entry Level of Pay
1 Ambassador 1 144200-218200
2 Minister/PR 1 144200-218200
3 DefenceAttache 1 123100-215900
4 Second Secretary 3 67700-208700
5 Second Secretary (PPS) 2 67700-208700
6 Attache 2 56100-177500
7 Personal Assistant 1 53100-167800
8 Personal Assistant 1 44900-142400
9 Assistant 5 44900-142400
10 Office Superintendent 1 47600-151100
11 Security Assistant 1 25500-81100
12 Security Assistant 1 18000-56900

Annexure-III

Embassy of India

Tashkent

Budget for the Financial Year 2024-25

S. No. Heads Amount (Rs. In Thousands)
(I) (II)
1. Salaries 56500.00
2. Rewards 1590.53
3. Allowances 91650.00
4. LTC 326.96
5. Wages 608.39
6. Medical 2203.99
7. Local Tours 2000.00
8. FTE 5500.00
9. OE 10552.25
10 Motor Vehicle 10895.00
11 Furniture & Fixtures 59.86
12 Fuel & Lubs. 100.00
13 Bank Charges 497.31
14 Repairs & Maint. 1444.89
15 ORE 4.96
16 Adv. & Pub. 355.84
17 RRT 65662.59
18 Minor Civil & Elect. works 26.55
19 ICT 342.88
20 Digital Equip 213.40
21 SAP 290.53
22 Training Expenses 0.00
23 Rent for others 0.00
24 Materials & Supplies 0.00
25 Machinery & Equip. 0.00
26 Other Fixed Assets 0.00
Total 250825.94

The Budget utilization for Financial Year 2024-25 is as under

Budget allocation during FY 2024-25 (Rs. In thousands only) 250,825.940
Expenditure during FY 2024-25 (in Rs) (Till Aug 2024) 127,567.366

Expenses in r/o Sh. Manish Prabhat, former Ambassador in this Mission for FY 2023-24 on Foreign Tours is NIL  and on Local Tours is Rs.4,09,494/-.

Embassy of India Tashkent   Following are the Chief Public Information Officer (CPIO) in respect of this Mission as per the list given below: –

# Name of Chief Public Information Officer (CPIO) Year of Deployment
1 Ms. Aditi B. Walunj, SS 01st Dec, 2020 till 17th Dec, 2020
2 Sh. Suresh Kumar C., SS 18th Dec, 2020 till 13th Jan, 2021
3 Sh. JSN Murty, SS 14th Jan, 2021 till 21st Dec, 2021
4 Sh. Rajesh Badola, SS 30th March, 2022 till date

RIGHT TO INFORMATION 

The Right to Information under the provisions of the RTI Act is available to the citizens of India only. RTI Act is an important legislation designed to promote transparency and accountability in the functioning of public authorities.

The full text of the RTI Act is available here: RTI-Act.pdf   .

The RTI Act also provides for appeals by aggrieved persons to the Central Information Commission of the Government of India.

Indian citizens resident in Uzbekistan may seek information in writing on payment of requisite fee during office hours on working days as per procedure laid down in the RTI Act, 2005.

Contact details of officers for addressing applications under Right to Information Act, 2005:

First Appellate Authority

Sh. Alok Pandey

Minister/PR to SCO-RATS

Email: prrats.tashkent@mea.gov.in

 

Central Public Information Officer

Sh. Rajesh Badola

Second Secretary (Consular)

Email:cons.tashkent@mea.gov.in

Applications seeking information under the Act may be sent along with a fee in Uzbek Soums equivalent to INR 10/- (Indian Rupee ten only) in cheque or demand draft favoring Embassy of India. (HindistonElchixonasi).

It may be noted that information provided under the Act is available to citizens of India only. Applications should be submitted along with documentary proof of Indian Citizenship (like copy of personal particulars pages of passport). More information is available at http://rti.gov.in  . The mailing address is Embassy of India, 16, Kara-Bulak Street, Mirzo Ulugbek District, Tashkent, 100052.

It may also be pointed out that as per section 6(1) (a) of the RTI Act, 2005, a person who desires to obtain information under the Act is required to submit the application to the Information Officer of the “concerned public authority”. Applicants are, therefore, advised to send their requests under the RTI Act to the Embassy only when the subject matter can reasonably be presumed to pertain to the Embassy. While section 6 (3) provides for the transfer of an application by a receiving PIO to another [concerned] PIO, this is clearly meant to cover situations where the application is addressed to a PIO on the assumption that it has been directed to the concerned PIO. Where the information required obviously does not pertain to the Embassy, the application may be addressed to the concerned PIO directly.

Payment of RTI fee online – Electronic Indian Postal Order (eIPO)

The scheme of Electronic Indian Postal Order (eIPO) has been launched by the Department of Posts, Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, in association with Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT). This would enable the Indian citizens abroad to pay the RTI fee online.

An Indian Postal Order can be purchased electronically by paying a fee on-line through e-Post Office Portal or through India Post website. The web-link for payment are:

https://www.indiapost.gov.in/vas/Pages/IndiaPostHome.aspx

The Credit Card or Debit Card of any bank powered by Visa/ Master can be used for this purpose.

Procedure

The RTI applicant is required to register on the website to create his/ her profile. Then he has to select the Ministry/ Department from whom he desires to seek information under the RTI Act. The eIPO is generated which can be used to seek information from that Ministry/ Department only. A printout of the eIPO is required to be attached with the RTI application sent in hard copy. In case RTI application is filed electronically, the eIPO is enclosed as an attachment. The profile is required to be created during the first time only.

The RTI application accompanied by an eIPO is similar in all respects to the RTI application accompanied by fees through any other approved mode. All the provisions regarding eligibility, time limit, exemptions etc; as provided in the RTI Act, 2005 continue to apply.

Currently, this facility is available only for Indian Citizens living anywhere other than in India. By this measure, those living abroad would be facilitated to seek information under the RTI Act, 2005. It is hoped that in future, this facility would be extended to all citizens within the country too. Any public authority which accepts a postal order should also accept an eIPO.

Extension of IPO Facility to Indians citizens residing in India 

The Department of Posts has extended the “eIPO” (electronic Indian Postal Order) service to Indian citizens residing in India also w.e.f. 13.02.2014, for purchasing Indian Postal Order electronically by paying a fee online through e-Post Office Portal i.e www.epostoffice.gov.in   . It can also be accessed through India Post website www.indiapost.gov.in 

This facility has been provided for Indian citizens to facilitate them to seek information from the Central Public information Officers (CPIOs) under the RTI Act, 2005. Debit or Credit Cards of any Bank powered by Visa/ Master can be used to purchase e-IPO.

The user needs to get registered at the website. He has to select the Ministry/ Department from whom he desires to seek the information under the RTI Act and the eIPO so generated can be used to seek the information from that Ministry/Department only. A printout of the eIPO is required to be attached with the RTI application. If the RTI application is being filed electronically, eIPO is required to be attached as an attachment.

This facility is only for purchasing an Indian Postal Order electronically. All the requirements for filling an RTI application as well as other provisions regarding eligibility, time limit, exemptions etc. will continue to apply.

An eIPO so generated must be used only once with an RTI application.

Information required under Section 4(1)(B) of RTI Act, 2005

Expenses on th Local and foreign tour of Ambassador 

Working Hours

Working Hours

Working Hours: Monday to Friday – 9.00 A.M to 5.30 P.M

Off Days: Saturday and Sunday

Address: 16, Kara- Bulak (Vakhshskaya) street,
Mirzo Ulugbek District Tashkent- 100 052

Department / Officers

Department / Officers

EMBASSY OF INDIA TASHKENT
16, Kara-Bulak (Vakhshskaya) Street, Mirzo Ulugbek District,
Tashkent – 100 052 (Uzbekistan) Tel: (998-55) 5010311/316/391, Fax: (998-78) 140-0987/999

Name Designation Telephone E-mail ID
Ms. Smita Pant Ambassador +998-55-5010381 amb.tashkent@mea.gov.in
Ms. Anu Rawat Second Secretary/PPS to Ambassador +998-55-5010386 amboffice.tashkent@mea.gov.in
HEAD OF CHANCERY
Shri Namo Narayan Meena Second Secretary (HoC) +998-55-5010480 hoc.tashkent@mea.gov.in
Shri M. Srinivasan Second Secretary
(ITEC)/PPS		 +998-55-5010482 itec.tashkent@mea.gov.in
Shri Kirti Singh Rawat Attache (Admin & DDO) +998-55-5010273 admin.tashkent@mea.gov.in
POLITICAL, COMMERCE, CULTURE & INFORMATION WING
Shri Sitesh Kumar Second Secretary (Pol & PIC and Com) +998-55-5010365 pol.tashkent@mea.gov.in
Shri Binod Kumar Prajapati Attache (Com. & Const.) +998-55-5010278 com.tashkent@mea.gov.in
CONSULAR, PASSPORT & VISA WING
Shri Rajesh Badola Second Secretary
(Consular)		 +998-55-5010362 cons.tashkent@mea.gov.in
DEFENCE WING
Colonel Vikram Raina, SM Defence Attache +998-55-5010335 da.tashkent@mea.gov.in
SCO-RATS
Shri Alok Pandey Minister/PR to SCO-RATS +998-55-5010488 prrats.tashkent@mea.gov.in

LAL BAHADUR SHASTRI CENTRE FOR INDIAN CULTURE, TASHKENT
House No. 5, Bo’zbozor Street, 2-tor, Mirzo Ulugbek District, Tashkent – 100077 (Uzbekistan)
Tel. No.: (998-71) 2672907, 2080419; (Email: indculcentre@gmail.com)

Name Designation Telephone E-mail ID
Shri Sitesh Kumar Acting Director +998-71-2672907 iccr.tashkent@mea.gov.in

Ambassador

Ms. Smita Pant, Ambassador of India to Uzbekistan

 

 

Bio-profile of Ms. Smita Pant
Ambassador of India to Uzbekistan

Ms. Smita Pant is a career diplomat. She joined the Foreign Service in 2001. She has served in various capacities in the Indian Missions in Madrid, London and Abu Dhabi. She has also served as Consul General of India in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. In the Ministry of External Affairs, she has handled work relating to India’s relations with Afghanistan, European Union and United Kingdom.  Prior to assuming charge as Ambassador of India to Uzbekistan, she was Joint Secretary looking after Bangladesh & Myanmar in the Ministry of External Affairs.

Ms. Pant holds Master’s Degree in Clinical Psychology. She is fluent in Hindi, English and Spanish. Her interests include philosophy, music and psychology.

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