PM condemns Gaza bombings

Chennai, Jan 8 : Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Thursday strongly condemned the Israeli bombing of Gaza Strip.

Expressing concern at the rise in tension in the Gaza region and the loss of innocent human lives there, Manmohan Singh said: "India has strongly condemned these incidents and it is our hope that the international community would get together and help restore peace in the region as soon as possible."

Inaugurating the seventh Pravasi Bharatiya Divas - India's annual convention to connect with its diaspora - the prime minister praised the contributions made by the five million strong Indian workers in the Gulf.

He said the government has put in place several measures for better protection and welfare of Indian workers, including entering into inter governmental agreements.

He said the government has launched a comprehensive e-governance project on migration. Under this, every worker will be issued a smart card containing all details of the worker, work contract, employer, insurance and other details.

This data will also be available to the Indian government as well as our missions overseas.

"The objective of this project will be to transform emigration process into a simple, transparent, orderly and humane process," he remarked.

Referring to the success of India's moon mission Chandrayaan I, the prime minister assured that an Indian - desi or pravasi - would land on the moon to fulfil the ancient dream of meeting Chandamama!