Employees will now need to pass examinations that take into account various qualifications including English language skills, computer knowhow and knowledge on existing rules and regulations on immigration to get posted under DoI. There will also be an aptitude test for the individual employees. [break]
Officials at DoI said the Home Ministry will prepare a roaster of employees securing at least 60 percent marks in the examinations for posting at immigration offices once the Immigration Posting Plan (IPP) is implemented. The examinations will be held every year.
The Home Ministry has already given its nod to the IPP proposal developed by DoI.
According to the IPP, there will be 100-mark examinations for employees seeking to serve at immigration offices. The IPP has set 30 marks each for English language skills and computer knowledge and 20 marks each for knowledge of immigrations rules and interview. The interview to be conducted by senior officials at the Home Ministry will take into account the attitude and personality of individual employees.
DOI officials said such a provision will not only make immigration services in the country more effective but also leave a good impression on visiting foreigners. “Immigration officials are the first to deal with foreigners visiting the country,” said an official at the Home Ministry, requesting anonymity as he is not authorized to talk to media. “Many of these officials are found to be poor both in English language skills and knowledge of immigration rules.”
Hitherto such qualifications have not been required for getting posted to immigration offices, and such postings are deemed ´lucrative´. Employees serving under the Home Ministry can get posted to immigration offices through direct recommendation by the minister concerned or senior officials at the ministry. “The new provisions aim at making work at immigration offices more service-oriented than ´lucrative´,” added the DoI official.
The Home Ministry´s plan comes in the wake of the government´s plan to celebrate 2011as a Visit Nepal Year.
Officials said the Home Ministry recently approved additional vacancies for the immigration office at Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA), the only international airport in the country, and at DoI to further strengthen immigration services. There will be a joint-secretary and an additional under secretary-level officer at the TIA Immigration Office starting December 15. The ministry has also approved additional vacancies for four immigration officers and 10 senior immigration assistants at the TIA immigration office.
The total number of employees serving at TIA Immigration Office will now reach 82, up from the existing 66. Officials said the additional vacancies were approved to make arrangements for three shifts at TIA immigration. Each shift will now last eight hours against the previous two shifts of 12 hours each.
Likewise, there will now be two directors at DoI against the existing provision for one director.
Apart from TIA Immigration Office, Nepal entry visas are currently issued from eight immigration offices including Kakarbhitta, Birgunj, Tatopani, Bhairahawa, Nepalgunj, Dhangadhi, Gadda Chauki and Mahendranagar.
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