Open House: What measures should the UT Administration take to keep a check on fraudulent immigration agents?

An online portal can reduce risk

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The administration should put information about licensed agents on online portal, while job aspirants should verify the authenticity of the immigration agents before applying. Hefty penalty or punishment should also be levied for fake/unscrupulous agents to curb the "dunki route" menace. The onus to avoid falling prey to unscrupulous agents lies on the applicants by adopting a genuine and legal route abroad.

Abhilasha Gupta, Mohali

Verify credentials and legitimacy

People often choose to settle abroad to seek better career opportunities, higher salaries, improve quality of life, access to better education. Before taking the leap, however, it is very important to educate individual to verify credentials and legitimacy before engaging with any agent, use a secure platform and understand the terms and conditions before engaging in any type of payment.

Charu Malhotra, Mohali

Ensure punishment for the guilty

The shrinking job opportunities drive the frustrated youths to the doors of illegal travel agents, who exploit the aspirants and swindle lakhs in form of visa, work permit and immigration fee. The authorities must ascertain details of agents from the deportees and take action for cheating and criminal breach of trust for exploiting the innocent and vulnerable.

SS Arora, Mohali

set up a formal complaint system

Immigration agents are required to obtain mandatory licenses and undergo rigorous training to ensure they operate ethically and professionally. Along with, there should be transparency in the fee structure and their services. Create a system for people to make formal complaints and track the resolution of their issues. Dedicated officers can be deployed to engage with vulnerable populations and provide them with accurate information about immigration process.

Anita K Tandon, Mundi Kharar

Create awareness among public

Immigration agents in the city continue to cheat people with false promises of sending them abroad. The administration should take necessary steps and create awareness among the public. The strict punitive action must be taken against such fraudulent agents. The tollfree helpline number must be available to report this issue.

Adish Sood, Amloh

Conduct inspection drives at offices

The UT administration needs to conduct a drive to check the documents of immigration agents. Most of the agents are running their offices without any license. The police too needs to create a 24*7 helpline for immigration victims so that they don't run from pillar to post to make complaints. A special police team should be designed to interrogate the immigration agents who are missing from their offices.

Sunny Dhaliwal, Chandigarh

Public information campaigns needed

The UT administration should enforce strict regulations, mandate licensing for immigration agents, and conduct regular inspections to curb fraudulent practices. Public awareness campaigns must educate people on identifying genuine agents. Additionally, a dedicated helpline and online portal for complaints can help expose scams and provide timely assistance, ensuring people don't fall prey to false promises.

Khushboo Singla, Kharar

Keep an eye on immigration agents

The authorities should create a common online portal for all immigration agents where they can upload all their required details. The authorities can further check the website regularly to ensure a check on the immigration activities. A hefty fine and exemplary punishment should also be ensured against anyone found flouting the rules.

Avinash Goyal, Chandigarh

Surprise raids can act as deterrent

There is an urgent need to check immigration frauds. The authorities and police officials should conduct raids on all the ongoing immigration offices and the ones found fraudulent must be sealed immediately. The government needs to act strict against the fraudsters and only registered and licensed immigration consultants be allowed to deal with immigration cases. A helpline should be set up where people can report any immigration fraud.

Shruti K Chawla, Chandigarh

designated authority should grant licence

A designated authority must grant licences to immigration agents after adopting a stringent process. It shall also have the power to conduct regular inspections, levy hefty punishments and prosecutes the offenders under suitable law in force. Simultaneously, regular awareness drives should be conducted among the masses about these fraud agencies while working domestically to enhance fruitful educational and employment opportunities.

Vaibhav Goyal, Chandigarh

Improved transparency is key

The UT administration, at the very outset, should register all immigration agents and allot them proper GST numbers. Records of all persons going aboard must be scrutinised based on their academic record and financial status. All transaction should be done in transparent manner. Immigration agents should be held responsible for properly guiding the person desirous of going aboard based on their qualification and experience. Lastly public must be educated through media/TV coverage on pros and cons of going aboard.

Col TBS Bedi, Mohali

Bring immigration firms under scrutiny

It should be mandatory for immigration firms to register with the administration failing which they should not be allowed to operate. People should be made aware widely and varily through govt. media in vernacular language of their recent fraudulent activities of fleecing people on false promise made before using dunki routes. Also create awareness about legal & illegal immigration activities.

Gurinderjit Singh Bhatia, Patiala

Keep a check on false advertisements

The authorities need to start taking strict action against the culprits in immigration frauds. False advertisements in the form of display boards ouside the immigration agents rarely draws any punishment. They should be checked and verification should be carried out. The administration must first register all genuine agents and have complete check on their advertisements, thier customers and financial transactions.

Wg Cdr JS Minhas (retd.), Mohali

Launch helpline for victims

To address the increasing frauds, strict licensing and monitoring of immigration agents should be enforced, ensuring that only verified professionals operate in this field. Unregistered agents must face severe legal consequences. Secondly, public awareness campaigns should be launched to educate people about legal immigration procedures and how to identify fraudulent agents. A dedicated helpline and an online complaint portal should be set up for victims to report fraud easily.

Akash Kumar, Chandigarh

Ensure proper audits of immigration firms

The UT administration should implement strict regulations and conduct regular audits of immigration agencies to curb fraudulent practices. A dedicated task force must be established to investigate complaints and take swift legal action against fraudulent agents. A mandatory licensing system with severe penalties for violations will also deter fraud.

Harinder Singh Bhalla, Chandigarh

Crack down on illegal agents

The authorities should cancel licenses of all immigration agents with immediate effect and start digital portals for exporting skilled and unskilled man power. This will save many lives and money of countless people. Even for study visas there should be such Portals countrywise. This will eliminate many unscrupulous entities in offering meaningless degrees to unsuspecting people.

KC Rana, Chandigarh

Regularly scrutinse immigration data

Checks by a competent authority and monthly scrutiny of public dealing can help reduce the risk of fraud. A toll free number for grievances and ensuring that only government registered agents are allowed to operate are also key.

Kirpal Singh, Chandigarh

Update registry of licenced agents

To combat fake immigration agents, the UT administration should update its public registry of licenced agents, requiring mandatory registration and licensing. It should be coupled with their credentials getting counter-checked from the registry of official govt websites of all popular immigration destinations. It should be scrutinised whether the agent is licensed and listed as an active immigration consultant and their registration numbers verified.

Brig Advitya Madan, Chandigarh

Reach out to authorities for help

Anyone planning to immigrate should inform the local police about their agent's credentials to ensure transparency and accountability. Immediate police action can follow if an agent engages in wrongdoing. Citizens must stay alert to avoid being deceived.

Vijay Katyal, Panchkula