| Abstract: | In this article, the researcher focuses on the gap between the institutional intent and the lived experience of women migrant workers in the Gulf by analysing the consular support framework on female migrant workers in India in the years 2014-2025. Within the last ten years, the Government of India has implemented various initiatives to safeguard its expatriate employees, such as digital grievance redressal platforms, such as the MADAD Portal, controlled recruitment frameworks, such as the e-Migrate System, and the growth of embassy-based shelters and helplines. These projects are an indication of a transition to a more orderly and reactive consular apparatus. Nevertheless, these mechanisms have not yet worked efficiently, especially with women working in domestic labour in the Gulf countries and labour protection is not sufficient and there is restricted access to institutional assistance. Combining policy analysis with the exemplary case studies, including not only the high-profile cases of crisis intervention in Saudi Arabia but also the more standard practice of shelter-based rescue in Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, the article assesses the role of the consular system in India as a protectionist or rather reactive mechanism. |
