Thiruvananthapuram: Around three lakh expatriates are likely to return to Kerala in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and the inflow of returnees is estimated to continue till December.
The remittances from expats is likely to see a huge dip of an estimated Rs 15,000 crore this year.
The state is set to witness the biggest influx of mass returnees from abroad due to the COIVD-19 crisis, according to Dr S Irudaya Rajan, professor at the Centre for Development Studies. He is also a member of the expert team that was tasked by the government to study about the ramifications of the COVID-19 crisis.
Keralites had earlier returned to the state en masse during the Gulf war and when Saudi Arabia implemented the Nitaqat Law (a law designed to localise labour).
However, this is the first time that the expat community is facing such a big crisis that has affected every country across the globe.
Most of the returnees would be from the Gulf region, which has about 18 lakh Keralites. Scores of people from the US and European countries too are likely to return.
Of the three lakh returnees, about 1 lakh people is likely to go back when the crisis is over. They will have to be given skill-training to find better jobs.
Around one lakh of the people had already made plans to return. They are likely to make investments in Kerala. Guidelines need to be issued for them.
However, the government will have to rehabilitate the remaining one lakh people, who have lost their means for a living. They will need both financial and social support.
