Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 2 (IANS) Kerala will present its progress card on what it has done for the diaspora and then ask for the centre's help for its plans, Diaspora Minister K.C.Joseph said Friday.
Joseph will be part of a Kerala delegation at the Pravasti Bhartiya Divas (PBD) to be held in Gujarat capital Gandhinagar from January 7 to 9.
Joseph Chief Minister Oommen Chandy would lead the delegation and there would be a Kerala Pavilion at the three-day event which will showcase "our advantages to the visiting diaspora".
"See, Kerala is probably the only state that has led from the front to support its diaspora, whenever there arose an occasion. There are limitations for a state and currently we have launched a rehabilitation package for those who have returned from the Middle-East. It's here we seek the Centre to support us financially when we draw up special schemes," the minister told IANS.
Of the 23.63 lakh Keralites who went abroad, 90 percent are in various Middle-East countries. Close to 13 lakhs have returned from these countries.
According to the latest figures from the State Level Bankers Committee, the total remittances made by the Kerala diaspora to the banks here has crossed Rs.1 lakh crores.
"The chief minister will be speaking on January 9 at the chief minister's session. He will touch upon the issue of giving necessary sanction for our proposal to start our own airline- Air Kerala and also on the hefty air fares being charged by airlines operating to the Middle-East," Joseph said.
According to the minister, the Kerala government is perhaps the only state government which recently has come out with a financial assistance package for the members of diaspora who have returned.
"We along with two public sector banks have launched a self employment scheme and by now more than 20,000 people have applied for it. The maximum cap on loans would be Rs. two million and the Kerala government would offer a 10 percent subsidy to all those who begin an enterprise in the agriculture, trading, manufacturing or the service sectors," he said.
Joseph, who would present Kerala's progress card in the Gulf Session, scheduled for January 9, also said: "The Kerala Pavilion will showcase investment opportunities for the visitors and tourism, IT would be the key areas."
The campaign for the assembly elections in Maharashtra is at its peak. All the politicians are ru
The first meeting of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) was concluded recently. In this meeting,
Royce Challengers Bangalore can make Faf du Plessis the new captain of the team. According to med
The tension between India and China on the eastern Ladakh border for the last year has not even e
New Delhi. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal will not appear before the Enforcement Directorate even today
Corona In Gurugram - record 2988 new infected in the district, 4 died
Gurugram In the district, on Wednesday, 2988 corona were found infected, which is the highest eve
AAP sacks Bhushan, Yadav from top body
New Delhi, March 4 (IANS) The AAP announced Wednesday that it had ousted two top leaders, Prash
The series of intermittent rains that started in Delhi-NCR yesterday afternoon is continuing. The
BJP demands action against Azam's bus ride
Lucknow, March 4 (IANS) The BJP Wednesday demanded legal action against Uttar Pradesh Urban Dev
Information about the earthquake in Vijayapura district of Karnataka has come to light this morni
