Big boost for NRK welfare scheme
With Pravasi Legal Aid Cell (PLAC), the Keral government is further boosting the welfare measures extended to NRKs, Harikrishnan Namboothiri, CEO of Norka Roots, said.
“We have plans to strengthen our other schemes for NRKs like Karunyam and Santhwana. We will be creating more awareness about them.”
The Karunyam scheme extends financial assistance to legal heirs of NRKs for repatriation of dead bodies in exceptional cases of extreme financial distress. An amount of Rs50,000 (Dh2,577) will be refunded to the bereaved family for repatriation from abroad and Rs15,000 (Dh773) from other Indian states.
The Santhwana scheme offers financial assistance to NRKs who have returned home in distress or their dependent family members.
Namboothiri said the government has disbursed almost Rs150 million (Dh77.3 million) under this scheme.
In July, the government had also launched a free ambulance service to transport the bodies of expats to their homes and NRK patients to hospitals. ■