Australian mission warns of visa scam in Delhi
New Delhi, Aug 20 : The Australian High Commission on Monday warned Indians of a visa scam in Delhi wherein over 50 people had been duped of lakhs of rupees.
"The public is warned of a new visa scam allegedly perpetrated by an employment agency operating in southwest Delhi," the High Commission said in a statement here.
"In recent weeks, more than 50 people have approached the High Commission after paying lakhs for work visas, only to be told that they have become victims of yet another visa scam."
Emphasising that the High Commission is concerned about the growing number of victims of such fraud and advising potential visa applicants to exercise due caution when agencies offer job visas, a commission spokesperson said: "Australia does not have a work visa programme of the sort promoted by scammers -- our Temporary Skills Shortage work visa is run only with approved sponsors, and only for applicants with specific skills in demand in Australia.
"Some of the recent victims have said they paid up to Rs 50,000 just for a non-existent airfare and a medical check with an unauthorised clinic, in addition to all the other fees they have been charged."
In addition to being charged for job placement -- sometimes with bogus job offers using the names of genuine, well-known companies in Australia -- and "visa lodgement" fees, the victims have also had to pay to undergo medical examination in a medical facility located in South Delhi, that is not associated with Australia's approved panel of physicians, according to the statement.
The southwest Delhi agency has also provided its victims with a fake visa grant notice, which links to a non-genuine visa checking service on a fake website.
"We have seen clones of our website before but the newest versions link to a fake visa checking site that only contains the visa details concocted by the agent," the High Commission spokesperson said.
"This may look convincing to someone who is wanting proof that the agent is not duping them -- but actually, it is still all fake."
Calling upon those who fell for this and other scams to promptly report this illegal activity to local authorities, the High Commission statement said: "All potential visa applicants should refer directly to information published on our official Home Affairs website: www.homeaffairs.gov.au.
"A list of approved physicians can be found at https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about/contact/offices-locations/india.
"The Australian High Commission website also has a page listing recent scams: http://india.highcommission.gov.au/ndli/Visas_and_Migration.html."
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'Saved 30 to 50 million lives': Trump repeats claim of ending India-Pakistan conflict, amid Iran war
Washington: US President Donald Trump has once again claimed that he ended the India-Pakistan conflict, stating that he “saved 30 to 50 million lives,” amid the ongoing war with Iran that has been going on for 6 weeks.
According to Hindustan Times, speaking at a press conference at the White House on Monday, Trump said he had played a key role in stopping multiple global conflicts.
“I ended 8 wars, including India and Pakistan, so much so that the Prime Minister of Pakistan told me that I saved 30 to 50 million lives,” HT quoted Trump as saying.
He repeated the claim a second time in the same press conference, saying that he stopped 8 wars, including the India-Pakistan conflict, and lamented again about not winning the Nobel Peace Prize.
The India-Pakistan tensions had escalated in May last year following Operation Sindoor, launched by India after the Pahalgam terror attack. Trump has repeatedly claimed that the 3-day conflict was ended by him, though India has repeatedly denied the claim.
“We have one more to end by the way,” Trump said, though he did not specify if the war in Iran, Ukraine or another global conflict was on his radar.
He also criticised NATO and key US allies, including South Korea, Japan, and Australia, for not supporting US efforts in addressing global conflicts and securing strategic routes like the Strait of Hormuz.
“You know who else didn’t help us? South Korea didn’t help us. You know who else didn’t help us? Australia didn’t help us. You know who else didn’t help us? Japan. We’ve got 50,000 soldiers in Japan to protect them from North Korea. We have 45,000 soldiers in South Korea to protect us from Kim Jong Un, who I get along with very well,” Trump said.
He described the consequences that Iran would face if it didn’t reach a deal with the US by his 8 PM ET Tuesday deadline.
“We have a plan, because of the power of our military, where every bridge in Iran will be decimated by 12 o’clock tomorrow night,” Trump said, adding that power plants could be “burning, exploding and never to be used again.”
Trump refused to say whether any civilian targets would be off limits in the U.S. response.
