The Assembly on Tuesday referred the Kerala Public Service Commission (Additional functions as Respects Certain Corporations and Companies) Second Amendment Bill to a subject committee.
The Bill was proposed to include the Kerala Pravasi Welfare Board under the 1970 Act so as to make appointments to the Board through the Public Service Commission (PSC). Minister for Law and Industries P. Rajeeve, who introduced the Bill, said that 23 posts were created for the Board after its formation in 2009. However, an advisory committee had recommended that the appointments be made through the PSC, for which the amendments to the 1970 Act were required.
Though the discussion did not go into the finer points of the Bill, the Opposition United Democratic Front (UDF) used the opportunity to accuse the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government of ignoring the concerns of the non-resident Keralites. Najeeb Kanthapuram, MLA, said that the NORKA-Roots which was formed to address various issues faced by the expatriates had become "rootless."
"The discussion on this Bill should become a social audit on the government's handling of the issues related to expatriates. The government has not done anything to rehabilitate the more than three lakh Malayalis who returned from abroad after the COVID-19 outbreak and are unable to go back. Quite a lot of money was spent on organising the Loka Kerala Sabha, which has not benefited the expatriates who have played a key role in financially empowering Kerala," he said.
LDF MLA C.H. Kunhambu refuted the allegations and listed out the various measures the government had implemented for expatriates, especially following the COVID-19 outbreak. He criticised the Union government for not taking any steps for their benefit. The Centre did not intervene even when the air fares went through the roof, making travel home unaffordable for many expatriates.
In his reply, Mr. Rajeeve said that the government had implemented the Pravasi Bhadratha scheme exclusively for the non-resident Keralites who had lost jobs during the pandemic, under which loans were being provided at low interest rates for starting small and medium enterprises. The NORKA Department Project for Return Emigrants (NDPREM), through which loans were being provided, had also benefited them. He said that 49,537 new MSMEs had been opened in the State till now under the one lakh MSMEs campaign.
Regarding criticisms against the Loka Kerala Sabha, he said that even the representative of the Kerala Muslim Cultural Centre (KMCC), which was closer to the United Democratic Front (UDF), had praised the initiative. Many of the participants had criticised the UDF's stand regarding it.
