With non resident Indian welfare being a priority area for the United Progressive Alliance government, Pravasi centres will be set up in Indian embassies in important countries to effectively address the problems of Indians working abroad, Union Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi said Monday.

To begin with, Pravasi centres would be set up in the Gulf states, European countries and the United States, where the bulk of Indian expatriates were working, he told a meet-the-press programme in Thiruvananthapuram.

The UPA government was firm in its commitment to grant voting rights to NRIs and the Cabinet had referred the matter to the law department for the scrutiny of the proposal.

Ravi said his ministry also planned to conduct a survey of Indians working abroad with the help of Indian embassies as the exact statistics in this regard were not available to them.

Holding that the welfare of Indians working in the Gulf countries was a priority concern for his ministry, the minister said Indian embassies will be asked to give their suggestions to ensure that those working abroad will not be victims of labour law violations.

A proposal to tighten emigration rules by making the penal provisions harsher to control recruitment rackets was also under consideration, he said.