At the beginning of 2021, Mohammad Bachchu Mia of Golapganj Upazila of Sylhet left his newly married wife at home and traveled to the United Arab Emirates in search of better livelihood.
Back at home things were not going very well as family feud with his newly wedded wife constantly hurt his feelings and Bachchu could not concentrate on work. He appeared disturbed most of the time as frequent news of family crisis at home in Sylhet made him extremely worried.
He was literally helpless as he could not address the problem from such a distance abroad and found none to act on his be half in his village to see and find a way out of the crisis.
Bachchu Mia spent almost a year and a half in the UAE without being able to find a permanent solution to the growing family crisis.
To his luck last September he heard about 'Expatriate Welfare Desk Hotline'. The toll-free hotline titled, "Probash Bandhu Call Centre" remains ready to take complaints or provide legal advice 24/7. It provides information services and necessary assistance from this call centre regarding any issues faced by expatriate workers and their families.
The hotline was launched at the Sylhet District Police Superintendent's office. Though excited, he felt hesitant to seek help officially due to involvement of family problems, but after much thought, he finally called the 'Expatriate Welfare Desk Hotline' number on October 27 last year and informed the police about the problems.
On receiving the official complaint from Bachchu Miah from UAE the Sylhet District Police Superintendent Mohammad Abdullah Al Mamun took the initiative to solve the problem.
The police officier called Bachchu’s his father and brother and other family members to the office within a week of Bachchu reporting the problem. Within a few days, the matter was completely resolved with the intervention of the local UP chairman as well.
Not only Bachchu Miai of Golapganj, UK expatriate Syed Habibur Rahman of Osmaninagar upazila of Sylhet and Saudi Arabian expatriate Abdul Hai Zakir of the same upazila have also sought help of the 'Expatriate Welfare Desk Hotline' number at the District Superintendent of Police office to solve similar crisis.
While talking to these beneficiaries (expatriates on the phone) they said that a big problem in their lives has been solved by such incredible initiative of the Sylhet District Police.
If the 'Expatriate Welfare Desk Hotline' was not launched, the problems would never have been resolved.
On September 15 last year, Sylhet District Police launched two help desks named 'Expatriate Welfare Desk Hotline' and 'One Stop Service for Police Clearance' for expatriates and those wishing to travel abroad.
The initiative was taken by the new Superintendent of Police Mohammad Abdullah Al Mamun. Since the launch of the 'Expatriates Welfare Desk Hotline', services are being provided to expatriates through call reception in two shifts 24 hours.
According to sources in the District Superintendent of Police office, an inspector, an SI, two male constables, and four female constables have been deployed in this help desk. They perform duties in shifts. However, those who receive calls from expatriates on the hotline are all from Sylhet. Women policemen are there to listen to the complaints or problems of women expatriates.
According to sources, a total of 242 calls have been received since the launch of the 'Expatriates Welfare Desk Hotline' on September 15, 2022, till December 31, 2022. Among them are 28 complete complaints and the rest of them are requests for advice on various issues. Of these 28 complaints, 14 have been settled and the remaining 14 are under investigation.
According to monthly statistics, the Expatriates Welfare Desk Hotline received 142 calls in September, of which 17 were full complaints. In October there were 38 calls, 3 with full complaints.
In November there were 40 calls, 4 of them were full complaints. And in December there were 22 calls and 4 full complaints. Most of the calls come from the UK, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, and Kuwait. Most of the complaints are related to mortgage and money transaction issues.
Abu Sufian, Additional Superintendent of Police in charge of 'The Expatriate Welfare Desk Hotline' said, “Since its launching we are trying to offer best of our services as early as possible. If necessary, cooperation of local police and public representatives is also sought.”
He said that various campaigns were conducted to get the services of the 'Expatriate Welfare Desk Hotline'. The campaign was carried out through the Facebook page, monthly welfare meetings of the district police, various events, and also involving all the police stations of the district.
Sylhet District Police Additional Superintendent of Police (Administration and Finance) Shahriar Bin Saleh said that many expatriates have problems with their property in the country.
They face various problems including encroachment of houses and places. Many expatriates buy assets in the country by sending money from abroad. But do not get it after returning home. Many expatriates also face problems with financial transactions. In most cases, such troubles happen with their relatives and family members. But due to a lack of proper guidance, expatriates often do not understand where and how they can get help.
Therefore, the current Superintendent of Police Abdullah Al Mamun launched the "Help Desk" with the responsibility to provide legal assistance to expatriates. This hotline is open 24 hours a day. If expatriates report their problems through this hotline, initiatives are taken to solve them.
Shahriar bin Saleh also said that the OC of the police station under which the problem of expatriates belongs is ordered to solve the problem quickly. Day by day this service program has become popular among expatriates due to its benefits. Therefore, the number of service users is also increasing.
