Since the time the multinational companies began making their presence felt in our homeland, there has been a flurry of jobs that have the Indians working directly for their clients abroad. Politically, ‘Make in India’ may be considerable success, but the young Indian of today finds the quintessential MNC job far more lucrative than the local company’s offer, and there are many other reasons attached to the premise.
The reason for our touching this particular topic though is the fact that this is resulting in a lot of Indians having to travel abroad with regular frequency. Even though the prospect of traveling abroad for work looks extremely exciting at first, but there is an array of points that need to be taken care of in order to plan a safe trip in an alien land. And today, we at SafetyKart, give you 8 insightful tips to stay safe while traveling abroad for work. Here they are:
Email someone a copy of itinerary
It is always better to be safe than sorry. In that case, there should always be someone apart from you, yourself, to know your itinerary that you are expected to follow. What this does is give you a sense of security that somebody else is aware of your eventual whereabouts if God forbid you were to fall in trouble in a land unknown to you. This person which you should mail your itinerary to must ideally be a family member or a very close friend you can trust in times of dire need.
Separate your money and cards
A very important point indeed if you are a digital age child, since the thieves of contemporary times are after your credit and debit cards as much as they are after your traditional green currency. In a foreign land, where you will take time to understand people and general land culture, it is going to be an extremely tough job to seek help from someone. Hence, even if a thief has stolen your wallet or bag or anything which had your currency, you will still have your credit/debit cards at your disposal which will help you live through the rest of your trip’s days.
Scan your passport and other important documents
As a wise man once said, it is better to prevent and prepare than to repent and repair, a person traveling abroad should always keep the soft copies and the hard copies of his original passport, visa, etc., kept handy with him in case an unsolicited tragedy happens in which he loses his originals. The copies will help him get back his originals in the near future, and more importantly, easily prove his identification to the local police so they may carry your complaint procedure forward.
Get traveler’s insurance
You may never know what the foreign country has in store for you, and hence if somehow you suffer the wrath of a thief or you lose your luggage or important documents or money somewhere, your insurance will help you live through your visit in a lot easier way than you otherwise could. Since you will be traveling on an official purpose, it is always better to talk to your organization’s Human Resource Department or the Administrative Department for further information on the Travel Insurance.
Avoid a cultural faux pas
India is mostly a liberal nation. Whatever we do here on a routine basis may be completely unacceptable in other countries, especially the European nations. One shallow example can be that the French people would be shocked if you give them a hug while greeting them or seeing them off, although kissing on the cheeks is acceptable. In such cases, it is always better to do some research on the country you are headed to beforehand in order to avoid a cultural faux pas.
Call up your Credit Card vendor
Another thing to do before you head out to your alien destination is to call up your Credit Card vendor (or even the Debit Card vendor in some cases). This will help in preventing a tragedy in the times when you will need to use your card. In some packages, the bank cards cannot be used internationally and hence the banks will freeze them on usage attempt almost immediately leaving you completely stranded and out of cash.
Know all the local emergency numbers
Just knowing the “100” number in India is not sufficient, you should know the equivalent of this and a lot other phone numbers in the country you are traveling to, to avoid any unforeseen incident. It is always better to keep a record of all the emergency numbers in your phone or a handy small diary.
Carry medicines along
Going to a foreign country and getting sick is the easiest thing to do, so it is always better to carry your first-aid kit or the medicine pouch with you. This helps in two regards: 1. You will get immediate relief, 2. You may not even get the same medicine abroad.
Feature Image Source:huffingtonpost.com
