Centre says over 6,700 Indians rescued from fake job rackets in South-East Asia

The Centre has told Parliament that it is aware of cases in which dubious firms have used fake job offers to lure Indian nationals to South-East Asian countries. According to the government, more than 6,700 Indians have been rescued so far from Cambodia, Myanmar and Lao PDR. Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh shared the details in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday.

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The government said these fraudulent firms attract people mainly through social media and then force them into cybercrime and other illegal activities at scam centres abroad. The minister noted that the exact number of Indians trapped in these countries is unclear because many travel on their own through unverified agents and illegal channels. The government has raised the issue with authorities in the concerned countries at the political level.


Indian Missions, he said, have been coordinating rescue and repatriation efforts with local foreign ministries and departments such as immigration, labour, home affairs, defence, border affairs and law enforcement. Singh shared that Indian embassies have helped rescue 2,265 people in Cambodia, 2,290 in Lao PDR and 2,165 in Myanmar. The time span for these operations was not specified.

He added that several channels are available for Indian nationals abroad to seek help, including walk-ins, email, 24x7 emergency numbers, WhatsApp, and grievance portals such as MADAD, CPGRAMS and eMigrate, along with social media.

Singh said the Ministry of Home Affairs has set up the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C) to address all forms of cybercrime. Advisories about fake job rackets are issued regularly by both the ministry and Indian Missions abroad. “Our Missions in South-East Asian countries issued various detailed advisories, upon receiving such information on Indian nationals being lured by fake job rackets in South-East countries, to job seekers, and advise them to verify all antecedents of recruiting agents and companies before accepting any kind of employment offer and not be enticed and entrapped in the fraudulent job offers in these countries,” he said.