With dreams of building a better life for themselves and their families, Kamala (32) boarded a sleeper-class private bus on May 12, 2025, along with her younger sister Raji (30), from Amalapuram—the administrative headquarters of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Konaseema district—bound for Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Hyderabad.
Along with the sisters were several other women on board the bus, all sharing the same destination: Muscat. The group arrived at Muscat International Airport (MCT) in Oman the following evening via Mumbai.
Recalling the initial excitement of taking the first step towards her dream, Kamala said that their Muscat-based agent, who was also a native of Konaseema, had sent a driver to pick them up from the airport. The driver identified the sisters using their photographs, collected their passports immediately after the introduction, and then dropped them off at the agent’s office. For the next fortnight, the sisters, along with other young women, were trained by the agent to work as “housemaids.”
“Like us, there was another group of 13 young women, mostly from our area, who were brought by our agent with the promise of the same work— as housemaids,” said Kamala, a mother of two boys aged 7 and 5.
Kamala, who had worked as a nurse in a private hospital, quit her job, while Raji, an intermediate dropout, gave up tailoring for their shared dream—to fly to the Gulf, earn money, and return to build their own house in their village. Kamala and Raji, also a mother of two children, live in separate rented houses with their families in the same village on the outskirts of Amalapura, part of Konaseema district—a land of coconuts in Andhra Pradesh, where the river Godavari meets the Bay of Bengal.
The sisters said that an opportunity came their way after their husbands supported their decision and helped them find agents recruiting women for jobs in the Gulf.
“By December 2025, nearly 15,000 unemployed workers from Dr B.R. Ambedkar Konaseema district had migrated to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries—Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. More than 70% of them were young women, most of whom found employment as housemaids,” said G. Ramesh, Manager, Konaseema Centre for Migration (KCM).
Overwork and isolation
Kamala said that her ordeal began within a fortnight after their grooming session ended. “Once our grooming session was over, all of us were presented to visitors who came to select women of their choice to be appointed as housemaids. My sister Raji was the first to be chosen by a sponsor for a five-day trial assignment in his house before being offered full-time work,” said Kamala.
However, Kamala added, “Five days after the first assignment, which tested my sister’s physical endurance, Raji decided not to continue. Frightened by the labor involved, she returned to India within a month.”
As per an unwritten condition observed by both agents and employers, the sponsor is entitled to retain the woman as a housemaid if satisfied with her work. At the same time, she is allowed to reject the offer if she is unwilling to continue.
Kamala, who chose to stay back, was hired by another sponsor under a two-year work agreement with a monthly salary of 100 Omani rials (₹24,152). The sponsor obtained a ‘Resident Card’ (issued by the Oman government) and a two-year work visa for Kamala by signing a ‘guarantee of responsibility,’ as mandated.
By November, however, Kamala began to suffer repeated illnesses, reportedly due to overwork, and was also subjected to isolation. “When I complained of sickness, my sponsor gave me medicines meant for body pain. Suspecting that I might quit, he cut off my internet access to prevent communication with my family. I had to continue working while on medication,” said Kamala.
“When I asked my sponsor to return my passport, he told me that I had to pay money for my freedom. It was then that I learned my agent had supplied me to him for a commission of ₹1.5 lakh, which I was required to repay in order to secure my freedom and retrieve my passport. I never knew such a transaction existed between my agent and the sponsor,” she said.
Migrants turn on-site agents
Allegedly, this is the modus operandi of unregistered agents recruiting young women aspiring to work in the Gulf countries. The price for housemaids varies depending on the duration of employment, ranging from one month to two years.
Officials highlight that many unauthorised agents are personally known to the victims. Complaints reveal that job offers often come through relatives or acquaintances settled in Gulf countries. Many former migrants themselves act as on-site agents, offering commissions to local contacts to recruit women.
Referring to the e-Migrate portal data of the Ministry of External Affairs, the KCM stated that about 1,100 agents are registered to recruit people from Andhra Pradesh for overseas jobs. However, in Dr B.R. Ambedkar Konaseema district alone, at least 165 unauthorised agents—including 30 women—are active, none of whom are registered on the portal. A deposit of ₹5 lakh and a registered office are basic requirements for authorisation.
The KCM repatriated Kamala on December 18, 2025. The process began after her sponsor returned her passport once the ₹1.5 lakh commission was arranged and paid by her family. Her one month’s salary is still pending, she said.
The Government of Andhra Pradesh established the KCM in Amalapuram in March 2025, after District Collector R. Mahesh Kumar urged the government to set up the centre following several online appeals for repatriation from victims in GCC countries.
KCM Manager G. Ramesh said, “Since March 2025, we have secured the repatriation of 78 victims from GCC countries. Of these, 76 are women whose families approached us to free them from the clutches of unauthorized agents. Seven bodies of workers, including two women who died due to accidents or illness, were also brought back.”
“Most repatriated workers reported excessive workloads beyond their contracts, health issues due to lack of rest, and physical abuse. They are often abandoned by both local and on-site agents,” he added.
Most victims are not repatriated through Indian embassies. “We try to facilitate repatriation through the recruiting agent. In this model, the agent is required to return the commission to the sponsor in order to retrieve the victim’s passport. This makes the process faster; otherwise, the victim has to repay the commission,” said Mr. Ramesh.
Of the 76 victims repatriated since March, only two were assisted through Indian embassies. Currently, the KCM is handling nearly 180 grievances related to fraud and workplace abuse.
Awareness
Another victim, G. Padma, 36, a mother of two children aged 16 and 14, was repatriated on March 13, 2026. A native of Uppalaguptam mandal, she had flown to Muscat in June 2023 and completed a two-year term .“My sponsor forcibly renewed my contract for another year. I was not allowed to contact my family after the renewal. I was finally freed after my family approached the KCM. However, I was not paid for four months, during which I was also subjected to physical abuse,” she said. Padma’s husband works as an agricultural labourer.
Suma, who was repatriated from Oman, said, “In my sponsor’s house, I survived on one meal for nearly two months. My agent blocked my number, leaving me alone”.
According to the Special Branch of Konaseema police, at least 48 cases have been registered against unauthorised agents in the district under the Emigration Act, 1983. Over the past 12 months, ten such cases have been filed. District Superintendent of Police Rahul Meena said that many repatriated victims were unwilling to pursue legal action against the agents.
Police personnel are part of the KCM and help trace agents and facilitate repatriation based on complaints filed by victims’ families. According to an official release by District Collector R. Mahesh Kumar, the Protector of Emigrants (PoE), Hyderabad, has been approached to strengthen coordination with Indian embassies. PoE official D. Anand and his team have conducted awareness programmes on safe overseas recruitment practices.
Andhra Pradesh Non-Resident Telugu Society (APNRTS) president Vemuru Ravi Kumar said that the State government had prohibited recruitment of housemaids through private agents and mandated hiring through OMCAP for better protection. “Over 90% of abuse complaints come from those not recruited through OMCAP,” he said, adding that contracts are often in Arabic, making them difficult to understand.
Surge continues amid tensions
He noted that migration from Konaseema is largely driven by economic need, with many women entering on tourist visas and later struggling to obtain work permits.
Even as agents temporarily slow recruitment due to the war, the Post Office Passport Seva Kendra in Amalapuram is witnessing a surge in applications. Passport Verification Officer G. Yuga Kiran said, “We receive around 600 applications every month. Over 90% are from women aspiring to migrate to Gulf countries.”
Meanwhile, the KCM continues to receive distress calls daily from migrant workers seeking help. Even as the repatriation of 11 victims, including nine women, has been delayed due to disruptions in airport operations in GCC countries due to the ongoing tensions in the West Asia.
(Names of the victims have been changed to protect their identity.)
