Kerala to seek centre's help to resolve diaspora woes: Minister


Posted on 3rd Jan 2015 05:14 pm by ram kishor

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."

Did you know?Explore Trending and Topic pages for more stories like this.
0 Like 0 Dislike
Previous news Next news
Other news

Delhi liquor rate: cheap liquor will be available in Delhi from today, government removed corona tax

New Delhi: The Delhi government has decided to remove the 70 percent corona tax on alcohol. This

Popular Monuments to have Handicrafts Emporiums

New Delhi, March 2 (IANS) The premises of popular monuments like the Red Fort, Taj Mahal and Qu

Bihar Election 2025: Bihar assembly elections may be held in two phases. Why is the preparation of the Election Commission like this?

Dates for the Bihar Assembly Elections 2025 may be announced today. This time, the election is ex

Panvel church attack act of vengeance, says CM; four held

Mumbai, March 24 (IANS) Four people have been apprehended in connection with the March 21 attac

'This is Modi's war...', US connects India with Russia-Ukraine war amid tariff war

Hours after US President Donald Trump imposed a massive 50 per cent tariff on India, his trade ad

IND vs ENG: India has not lost a test match in Ranchi yet, England will play for the first time in Dhoni's city, know record

The fourth match of the five-Test series between India and England will be played in Ranchi. Both

Punjab Corona: Corona explosion in Air India flight from Italy to Amritsar, 125 out of 179 passengers infected

In Punjab, the pace of Corona has taken an alarming pace. On Thursday, 125 passengers of an Air I

The global mechanism will have to be created to control currency like Cryptocurrency: Nirmala Sitharaman

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday called for action at the global level for the ever-

Skill India: Skills of 75 thousand youth of Delhi NDMC will improve, will get training in electrical, plumbing, etc.

The central government is going to up-skill 75 thousand people of NDMC of Delhi. Skill India will

Coach McCullum guilty of KKR's defeat: Shreyas had a tussle, sent Venkatesh to No. 6 and Mavi to bat before Cummins

In the 30th match of IPL 2022, Rajasthan defeated Kolkata by 7 runs, registering a thrilling win.

Sign up to write
Sign up now if you have flare of writing..
Login   |   Register
Follow Us
Indyaspeak @ Facebook Indyaspeak @ Twitter Indyaspeak @ Pinterest RSS



Play Free Quiz and Win Cash