THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has called for making use of NRKs' investments for the nation's development rather that going for funding by foreign agencies.
Inaugurating the first meeting of the Loka Kerala Sabha here on Friday, Mr. Pinarayi Vijayan also offered schemes like single window clearance to ensure ease of doing business in the state. To ensure overseas job opportunities to Malayalis in the changing scenario, the state would also launch skill development programmes, he said.
Mr. Vijayan said that the state would suggest to the centre to make use of NRKs' funds for development activities rather than going for loans from foreign agencies which charged higher interest rates.
He also mooted setting up a consortium of the centre and state government to initiate welfare activities for NRKs. Their remittances being a major source of the nation's foreign exchange, the centre has an obligation for their welfare. Welfare and re-employment schemes for NRKs and returnees by pooling funds from NRKs would also be considered, he said.
It was unfortunate that so far no serious efforts were made to tap the skills of NRKs. "The state government is launching a series of steps to ensure ease of business. Time-bound clearances and single window are some. To make use of NRKs' skills and attract investments, we need to ensure better returns to the investors," he said.
He also said that a fool-proof statistics of NRKs need to be collected for effective implementation of welfare schemes for them.
