Chennai: Calling upon diaspora Tamils to regularly visit their motherland with children and take them to places like Keeladi, Perunai and Adichanallur and also remain connected with the Tamil language, Chief Minister M K Stalin said facilities had been made to enable non-resident Tamils invest their savings safely in Tamil Nadu, both in the government and in industry.
Speaking at the valedictory function of the two-day celebration of the Tamil Diaspora Day with the theme ‘Enathu Gramam’ (My Village) on Friday, Stalin that the DMK government was committed to the welfare of Tamil people wherever they lived and rejoiced over seeing so many overseas Tamils in one place.
Delighted over the presence of several eminent Tamils from countries like Singapore, Malaysia and Sri Lanka - sitting and past Ministers, legislators, Mayors and industrialists - at the event, which has been organized for the third year in a row, he said it was a celebration of Tamils who went out to nourish the world.
The same venue, Chennai Trade Centre, witnessed an eminent gathering from across the world that had congregated to nourish Tamil Nadu when the Global Investors Meet was held earlier this week, he said and gave details of his government’s efforts in helping diaspora Tamils in various ways through the formation of the Non-Resident Tamils Welfare Board.
Among those he mentioned were finding solutions to 53 complaints from diaspora Tamils against agents and about land grabbing, providing legal aid to Tamils landing in trouble in foreign countries, arranging for the return of those who want to come back home due to ill health or other reasons and ensuring the handing over to the relatives the mortal remains of Tamils passing away in other countries.
In nations like Ukraine, Sudan, Cambodia, Thailand and Myanmar when Tamil people faced untoward situations, the government had evacuated them safely and the same gesture had been extended to Tamil people caught in riots and tragedies even in Manipur and during the Amarnath pilgrimage, he said.
Also efforts had been made by the government to ensure that youth migrating to other countries for higher education were not hoodwinked by creating awareness about overseas institutions and also by holding orientation programmes on foreign culture, language and lifestyle to provide them a better understanding of life abroad.
The Chief Minister referred to the programme ‘In Search of Root,’ under which 58 diaspora youth were chosen to visit Tamil Nadu and learn about its culture and traditions. Those youth, who were taken to various places to get a firsthand information of the people’s life in the past and present between December 27 and January 10, also spoke about their experiences at the meeting.
The meeting with the theme, ‘Tamil will Triumph’ (Tamil Vellum), had participants from over 50 countries discussing a wide range of issues relating to Tamil.
