With nearly one million Indians residing in Dubai and the northern emirates, nearly 65 percent of them being blue-collar workers, the welfare of the Indian community here is of "strategic importance" and will get top priority, said Venu Rajamony, the new Indian consul general here. There are nearly 1.8 million Indians in the UAE.

Rajamony said the endeavour of the consulate would be to reach out to the community, individually and collectively, to understand their problems and solve them.

In recent times, there has been increase in number of salary defaults, he said. In order to address the problems of the Indian community here, the consulate holds a monthly 'Open House' where such issues can be taken up by the senior officers.

The Middle East has become one of the target market for more than three-quarters of India's main export products, including fresh fruit and vegetables, meats, confectionery and dairy items.

Indian food exports to the countries of the region are worth an estimated USD 3 billion a year, with agricultural and processed food exports to the UAE alone accounting for more than USD 273 million.

"India is an important partner of the Middle East market both in terms of exports and imports," an embassy spokesperson said.