Many non-resident Keralites can’t fly back for legal, personal hurdles

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Even while hailing the government decision to offer free air tickets to NRKs who are unable to visit their homes for years owing to fiscal problems, experts suggest that there are other legal and social hurdles faced by several NRKs.

There could be many who can't visit their homes due to fiscal problems, whereas there are others who are facing legal issues like reluctance of employers in handing over passport, overstaying without any records and imprisonment for various reasons. Another challenge for the government is to identify the real beneficiaries, they point out.

“Many NRKs are overstaying in Gulf countries without visas who have not availed of the opportunities to go home without fine and punishment. They just can’t return with a free ticket, but would require legal support,” said Pravasi Bandhu Welfare Trust chairman K.V. Shamsudheen.

He also said that some NRKs were not visiting homes due to family deputes.

In many cases, the foreign employers did not allow the mandatory leave or free air tickets. “A number of NRKs are stranded in foreign countries as employers deny them periodic leave and travel facility that are mandated in job contracts,” said centre for development Studies professor S. Irudaya Rajan who conducted extensive studies on migrants.

He also pointed out that many NRKs prefer to encash the free tickets offered by the employer so as to improve the savings as well as to cut costs involved in buying gifts for friends and relatives while visiting home.

Mr Rajan hailed the government’s decision to offer free tickets. “There are indeed many who are unable to visit their hom-es due to real fiscal issues. Hence the government's offer could be availed of by them,” he said.

Film maker P.T. Kunju Muhammed, who has been anchoring a television programme on the plight of NRKs, also said that there were those who could not visit homes for a long time for reasons other than fiscal.

“It will be a challenging task for the government to identify the deserving beneficiaries of the scheme,” he said.

Meanwhile, NORKA so-urces said that the online registration was just to collect data of those who could not come home for the last five or more years.

“After looking at the numbers, the government will come out with schemes. The veracity of the beneficiary could be confirmed with the su-pport of Malayali associations,” said the official.