“Chak De India” – the movie came out some years back, but I am sure that a majority of you still remember these lines from it…  “aapko apne hi desh mein koi mehmaan kahe to aapko kaisa lagega..?” (How will you feel if you are regarded as guests/outsiders in your own country?) The lines were uttered by two North-Eastern Indian women hockey players during their registration process in the Women’s hockey team of India. Remember the scene now???

Surely, the movie dealt with other major issues but this particular line caught my attention. And yesterday, when I was reading this incident that a North-Eastern girl was badly molested in Munirka (New Delhi), my belief strengthened that girls from North-Eastern states like Mizoram, Assam, Tripura, to name a few are still treated outsiders in their own country. This victim from Mizoram was waiting for her younger sister, just when a restaurant waiter approached her and started passing lewd comments at her. It was when she started shouting; the neighbours came into her rescue and saved her from the brutal deeds of the culprit!

This is not the first incident which marked any North-Eastern girl as a victim. One can count thousands of such occurrences in the past… Some call them Nepalis, some address them as Chinese or Tibetans, but is it really their fault that their facial features do not match any typical Indian woman? Every day or the other, these innocent girls, who come to metropolitan cities to make their career, have to face lousy comments in some form or the other and have no choice but to ignore them, each passing day.

Well, it is accepted that these “so-called outsiders” are not good at communicating in Hindi, but does this mean that they are not Indians? The fact is that in most of the North Eastern states, English is the most widely spoken language and they hardly converse in the national language of India. But, once they land at the core of the country, where Hindi is widely spoken, they should be little empathetic and show their willingness to learn a bit of the language.

Not only in Delhi, similar incidents are reported in the everyday newspapers in other Indian states as well. North-Eastern people, especially girls are not safe and secure in these states. However, the rate of these incidents is significantly higher in Delhi. Why? Are Delhiites harder on these people? Are they more discriminating than other Indians? Believe it or not, the discrimination on North-Eastern people is a sort of racism!

The fact that a majority of these girls come alone, stay alone, make them a soft target, be it for molestation or some other brutal crime. Why don’t we guys understand that having unfamiliar features does not make them outsiders and they are as much Indians as our mothers or sisters. It’s high time that we should start addressing these issues and commence making some really HUGE changes in our mindsets!

On 10th March 2010, the government of Canada announced certain amends to be brought about in the criteria for excepted language skills. These changes would be applicable for all those applying under the Federal Skilled Worker and the Canadian Experience class. This was announced by Jason Kenney, the Minister for Immigration and Multiculturalism.

Clarifying the above, Kenney said that the language skills criterion has not changed as such. The only change is that from now on, the applicants have to submit the proof of their language skills while submitting their application itself. So, the applicant has to now submit his proficiency either in English or French since these are the two official languages for Canada. This amend has been brought about to ensure faster processing of the applications.

Earlier, the applicants were permitted to either submit a written statement or a test conducted by a third party that is independent from the Citizenship and Immigration Canada. The written statement was meant for those who had English or French as their first language. But this was not being limited to the above. Those not having the above as their first language were also due advantage of the same. These written statements did not prove the candidate’s proficiency in the practical use of the language. So, they had to provide with other forms of evidence which obviously lead to a processing delay.

With this, all the applicants would be given a single chance to prove their proficiency in the same. However, they are still free to submit a written statement.

On the other hand, submitting test results for the language skills would ensure quick and genuine processing of the application. With this, these tests would also let the applicants know of their standing in the same. After getting their test results, they would be in a better position to decide on whether to apply for immigration or not. Incase of written statements, the applicants would not know how much they have scored till their application has not been assessed by the relevant authority.

However, it is recommended to present with the test results straight away to avoid any forms of delay.

It has to be realized that for any immigrant, the language skills are the key indicators to his success rate in the job market. The better his language skills, the more likely are his chances of landing with a good job.

When it comes to the applicants of the Canadian Experience Class, it is mandatory for them to meet the requisites for the same. For the Federal Skilled Workers, a maximum of twenty four points are awarded for this criterion.

For all the netizens out there, the term “Hinglish” is definitely not new! For those who don’t know, Hinglish is a combination of English and Hindi used while communicating. It is known that English is the most widely spoken language whereas Hindi is the second largest spoken in the world. When it comes to India, it is one of the most populated countries in the world. So, it is but obvious that Hinglish has a higher level of preference in India.

Hinglish is now the second most commonly used language in India. And according to Professor David Crystal, it might not be long before it becomes the Queen’s new English. He says that there are more than 350 million Indians who widely use Hinglish in their daily lives as a common mode of communication. This number is far beyond the total number of people speaking in English, both in the United States and the United Kingdom.

What led to the emergence of this concept? Firstly, Indians are known to be the brainiest in the world. There are people who might debate on this statement…but it is a fact! Indians are found in every part of the world. And so, with Indians come the Indian language which obviously is mixed with the local language. This local language in most cases turns out to be English.

Secondly, connecting with the world has its own perks! The Indian culture is slowly and steadily gaining popularity outside the subcontinent. These mainly include Bollywood movies which have been found to be quite amusing, thanks to its song and dance sequences. These movies are a good source of Hinglish.

Thirdly, with the advent of globalization, Internet was introduced to Indians. With Internet came online social networking in the form of Orkut scraps, emails, chats which introduced us all to another form of Hinglish. This included using English script as a medium to communicate in Hindi. A few years back, this trend might have seemed to be very weird and probably quite difficult to comprehend to what is being communicated. This is the most common form of Hinglish used by one and all. This is to such an extent that there are some who find it quite a task to actually read in Hindi. And so, it is not very hard to believe that Hinglish would soon spread through the Internet.

In India, English has had and still enjoys a status in itself. This is due to the Colonial history that the country has. It continues to be the language of the elites and the classes. And it is the only language that binds Indians together where there are many different languages and numerous dialects.

And for the GenX urbanites, it is the new mantra of being cool! It is agreed that India lives in its villages. However, this concept is spreading beyond the urban to the semi – urban India as well.

Above all, time will tell the concurrent impact that it would have on the Indian society as a whole and its implication on a global platform.

According to reports, Immigration Minister Chris Evans is expected to come out with certain Immigration changes that would favor those skilled migrants who speak good English. In addition, the changes are expected to target the employees who hold sponsorship by employers rather than self-nominating applicants.

Senator Evans confirmed that close to half migrants with skills on MODL, manage to get jobs in their field, and the rest end up with no jobs in their hands or satisfy themselves with low-skill jobs.

Evans went on to say that skilled migration is one of the critical facets of Australian immigration as it contributes to the overall economy.

Talking about the new system, he said that the amendments would allow potential migrants get more points on the basis of their qualification in high value professionals, experience level, proficiency in the English language and qualification from a prestigious university.

The new amendments would surely have an impact on jobs, as many overseas students have already engaged themselves in courses present on in-demand list, which may no longer assist them in permanent migration!

In another news piece, stats show that around 90% of temporary migrants, the ones who were given Subclass 457 visas last year are highly paid professionals. As far as the temporary skilled migrants are concerned, the overall pay package is around $100,000, with those belonging to mining field, having an average pay of $169,000.

Foreign Skilled workers employed in Western Australia belonged to the highest paid category, followed by New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, Tasmania, Northern Territory, ACT and South Australia.

Recent amendments in the General Skilled Migration (GSM) have led to the placement of Discussion paper on the website of department until 12 March 2010. The paper has been established after a mutual discussion between Commonwealth, State and Territory Government along with other officials.

The discussion is open to public comment. In addition, following are some of the fragments from the paper (facets that should build a new Points Test:

• It should contribute to selecting those prospective applicants who would provide maximum human capital, hence contributing to the highest in the Australian economy. In addition, it should not bar/cease very good applicants from offshore or in Australia.
• It should also allow applicants decked with high value attributes including proficiency in the English language, to name a few, to get the maximum number of points. Also, it should be able to work under the current as well as the new arrangements (if any) in a flexible manner.
• Undue weight to any one given factor should not be provided.

Check out the official website for more info: http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/general-skilled-migration/pdf/points-test-discussion.pdf

The main motto behind introducing this discussion paper is know the effectiveness of the Points Tests in selecting good applicants who could serve the Australian economy in the best possible way

Also, it would become necessary for the Department of Immigration and Citizenship to provide a report on the outcome of this review. The applicants can submit their comments at independent.skilled@immi.gov.au by 12 March 2010.

The Skilled Regional Sponsored Visa Program allows individuals with skills to enter the New South Wales New as per the occupational requirements of the regional areas in the state. This visa category that falls under the subclass 475/487, requires sponsorship from the state government or a Regional Certifying Body in order to help an individual to enter and work in the NSW.

Like any other visa category, the Skilled Regional Migration Visa also requires applicants to meet a number of criteria. Here are a few of them:

• An applicant should not be above forty-five years of age.
• An applicant should have a certain level of English language skills.
• An applicant must gain at least 100points on the DIAC skills test.
• An applicant must intend to live and work in regional New South Wales.

New South Wales accepts applications for sponsorship under the Skilled Regional Sponsored Migration category for regions- Southern Inland Region, Northern Inland Region, Riverina, Orana and Murray. The Regional Certifying Bodies in NSW are entitled to accept the applications for skilled occupations. But, before applying for this visa, one needs to verify if he/she has the qualifications that are recognized in Australia, as well as the listed occupations available in the regions.

In order to apply for sponsorship from any of the above mentioned regions, all one needs to do is to fill up the NSW From R and send it to the regional office, along with a copy of the skills assessment with application fee!

Recently, Prince Edward Island, Canada made changes to its Provincial Nominee Program (PNP). With the implementation of new amendments, immigrants will find it easier to go through the program in order to meet the requirements needed to obtain residency in Prince Edward Island!

Earlier, individuals who intended to migrate to Canada under the PEI PNP Entrepreneur Stream had to deposit $25,000 as an evidence of good faith, along with the intention of settling in the province. However, the amount gets refunded, given the applicant had resided in the province for a year. As per the new amendment, this requirement has now been relaxed.

Also immigrant entrepreneurs whose proficiency in English or French, being the two officially accepted languages in Canada is insufficient were required to deposit an amount of $20,000, that to be returned after they demonstrated a certain level of language skills in either of the languages. With the changes to the PNP, the PEI government lowered the standard for the official language skills.

The PNP is a federal-Provincial partnership between the governments of Canada and Prince Edward Island. The program was introduced to accelerate immigration to Canada for individuals, as well as families who intend to settle in Prince Edward Island. As per the rules of the program, applicants must meet the basic requirement of having moderate proficiency in either of the two Canada’s official languages, English or French. PNP allows applicants to immigrate under three categories- (1) Skilled Worker; (2) Immigrant Entrepreneur; and (3) Immigrant Partner.

The Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada is a judiciary committee that reports to the Canadian government on issues linked with Immigration and Refugee. At present, Brian P. Goodman, is the current chairman of the committee.

The Board is decked with four divisions: Refugee Protection Division, Immigration Division, Immigration Appeal Division and Refugee Appeal Division. Each division of IRB has the onus of making decisions on various immigration related issues, but the tribunal process for every division remains the same. The hearing is commenced in the similar way as if a hearing is going on in a court, rather in an informal manner. The process follows Canadian laws. Following are some of the facets linked with the Tribunal process:

The applicant appearing before IRB holds the right to be represented by a trusted source (for instance an Immigration and Visa consultant, family member, to name a few). In addition, you have all the freedom to present arguments and documents for your case.
Hearing can be held by various means like in person, video conference or telephonic conversation also. The language used can be English or French and the applicant has the right to choose the language for his hearing. Person concerned can also apply for an interpreter.
“Member” is the term given to those who hear the case. Also, the hearings of the refugee are kept private while others can be made public.
The decision is made on the basis of the background of the applicant, documents and evidences provided by the concerned person, rules and regulations of the Canadian law and the hearing.
It is mandatory that the judge (also known as Member) should justify the decision made by him by giving ample reasons to support the final decision.

For more information on the cases applied under the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, take advice from an expert Immigration veteran and commence further.

Of late, the Canadian province of Quebec is seeing growth in the population of English-speaking people, better known as Anglophones! Montreal, the largest city in Quebec further has experienced the considerable flow of Anglophones in recent years. Ever since the inception of the Charter of the French Language or the Bill 101, English has been an endangered language in Quebec. But, it is seen that the language is getting stronger in Montreal. According to a StatsCan report, Anglophone population in Quebec rose by about 5.5 percent in the period between 2001 and 2006.

The Bill 101, a fundamental law in Quebec, Canada, passed in 1977 defines the linguistic rights of Quebecers and states French as the sole official language in the province. Even though the law was passed to protect the French language, it somehow had affected the inhabitants of Quebec who speak English, belong to “minorty” group. English-speaking minority. Soon after the enaction of the charter, English language had gone endangered.

Then Minister of Cultural Development, Quebec, Camille Laurin proposed the Bill 101, which was later enacted by the National Assembly of Quebec on August 26 in the 1977. The primary purpose of the charter was to promote the use of French as the official, as well as public language of all Quebecers. It also emphasized to increase the francization on immigrants. In an attempt to do this, English language was being restricted to children who were already in the education system; their siblings; children whose parents had attended an English elementary education in Quebec or children of parents who were temporarily posted in the province.

But, the recent years saw a change in the trend. The year 2006 witnessed the first growth in English-speaking population in Quebec in last thirty-five years, contributed mostly by population from other provinces of Canada. During the first six months of 2009, an estimated 12,348 Anglophones entered Quebec from other Canadian provinces. The reason behind the growing number of Anglophones in Quebec, especially Montreal might have been a cultural shift that has been instrumental in making English acceptable in the workplace in Quebec!

The city of Windsor, Ontario is introducing a new program, which is instrumental in getting foreign professional their certification to work in Canada. It is a sixty-five week program, a venture by the Ontario’s provincial government and Canadian federal government.

The significant program for foreign professionals is being offered at the University of Waterloo through the Odette School of Business. Initially, the program was started with a number of twenty-five students. The government expects to increase the number of students to sixty-five for the next term, since the program is now officially approved.

In order to be eligible to attend the program, students are required to hold international degrees. In addition, they should have work experience in accounting, finance or economics. In the course of the program, students may be required to study English, hone their skills in computer and attend university-level business classes. The program ends with written exams. Students would require to appear in exams in order to gain their certification.

The program has already helped many students with international and work experience gain employment in Canada. The Ontario government is now more hopeful to help immigrants find employments. It would help talented and skilled immigrants choose their right career options and get success in the their respective fields!

The new program for foreign professionals is part of Ontario government’s plan to help talented people engage in their fields of interest and find appropriate career opportunities! With the inception of this program, we hope Canada would attract more and more immigrants in search of better opportunities!