Kerala chief minister Oommen Chandy on Friday sought the Centre’s support to rehabilitate Indians who have returned from Saudi Arabia after change in laws there. “The trends indicate that the employment opportunities in the Gulf sector may diminish and reforms like ‘Nitaqat’ may force the Indians to return. We must think about how we can rehabilitate those who come back to India and in what way we can make use of their expertise,” Chandy said at the 13th Pravasi Bhartiya Divas here.
‘Nitaqat’ makes it mandatory for companies in Saudi Arabia to hire one Saudi national for every 10 migrant workers. The Saudi government was implementing the Nitaqat law to cut unemployment in the country.
“We are bound to obey the laws of the land where we live, but at the same time we have to protect the genu ine interest of the Indian diaspora also,” he said. Although the Kerala government has chalked out a rehabilitation package, however, it lacks resources to implement it, he said.
“We anticipate a good support from the government to rehabilitate the returnees in a proper and useful way,” he said.
The CM asked the government to keep a check on exorbitant airfares from Indians returning from Gulf for vacations. “About 70% of Indians in Gulf are not paid properly and they are finding it difficult to purchase air tickets. They should be given reasonable facility to join their family at least one time,” he said.
There is a need to channelise the remittances sent by Indians towards the development of the country, he said. “If properly channelised, NRI remittances can make a significant impact on the states,” Chandy said.
–PTI