A US government employee stationed in a foreign country receives allowances that pay for the full cost of housing and utilities. In Mumbai, the housing allowanc

A US government employee stationed in a foreign country receives allowances that pay for the full cost of housing and utilities. In Mumbai, the housing allowance is relatively small as such things go ($1500ish/mo depending on grade level and family size), but there's also a 25% hardship allowance and an education allowance sufficient to send your K-12 children to an eye-wateringly-expensive private school. Other benefits include four to six weeks a year of vacation, three weeks a year of home leave, most likely both US and Indian holidays, and they probably have authority to throw in a 25% relocation incentive on top of that. FDA is also allowed to pay in excess of the usual federal pay cap for some positions. If they really can't find people willing to take that deal, they've got some major organizational issues that need to be addressed. (Source: I work in a different part of the federal government, but most of these rules are set by State.)