Siliguri, May. 30: A decade after the landlocked Himalayan kingdom opened its doors to the world, it has issued a royal notification barring “foreign” workers in 16 different occupations.

Come June 1 (Tuesday), the royal decree will bar foreigners from working in service-related sectors. The ban, through a royal notification, was passed by the Bhutan National Assembly resolution in January this year. Bhutan, for years, has been employing more than 50,000 foreigners, particularly Indian nationals, as accountants, clerks, office assistants, receptionists, typists, computer and telephone operators, drivers, contract labourers, daily wagers and regular job employees.

Though senior Bhutan bureaucrats are in favour of the “son-of-the-soil” policy, in private, they admit that restriction of foreign workers in some of the service related sectors might hinder the country’s march towards modernity, an apprehension that is shared by a large number of private entrepreneurs. Some senior bureaucrats also pointed out that the ban was also a way to keep undesirable and subversive elements — the Ulfa-NDBF-KLO — off limits to the kingdom.

Speaking over phone from Thimphu, secretary of the labour and human resources ministry Pem L. Dorji said: “Foreigners were given the jobs because they werebetter qualification academically and more skilled than Bhutan nationals. The kingdom, with a population of less than 6 lakh, has a working population of 2,27,698. Of them, over 50,000 are foreign nationals. There are 4,522 unemployed educated youths in the age group of 15-24 years at present. His Majesty Jigme Singye Wangchuk’s vision is that every man and women graduating from the various technical and non-technical institutions should be given appropriate jobs.”

Private entrepreneurs are not too happy about the ban. So are multi-national companies which have opened shop in Bhutan.

A senior executive (who did not want to be named) of the Tashi Group of Companies, one of the largest private corporate houses, said over phone from Phuentsholing: “The policy is good for the kingdom. But the people of Bhutan look down upon manual labour. With no economic pressure and a large section of affluent Drukpas, being well placed in administrative posts, who will do the clerical job? Bhutanese educated youths shun service sector jobs like that of a receptionist and computer/telephone operators or for that matter, drivers.”