2-5 lakh Keralites to return from Gulf by June: Issac

About two to five lakh Keralites working in different Gulf countries are likely to return home by June this year, following loss of jobs due to the global economic recession, finance minister TM Thomas Issac told the assembly here on Wednesday.
   
He was replying to a calling attention motion on the need to formulate a special scheme to rehabilitate these Keralites.
   
Issac said the government would come out with a package to help them and demanded that the Centre formulate a relief package for those returning from the Gulf.
   
As per latest information, 45 per cent of the ongoing construction work has been put on hold in the Gulf region and the worst affected country was Dubai, Issac said.
   
Though the government did not have an accurate figure of the number of persons who would come back, the Centre for Development Studies has estimated it at about two lakh, he said adding that information from the Gulf was that it would go up to five lakh.
   
The government would announce its schemes in the budget, to be presented on February 20, he said.
   
Taking up the matter, KC Venugopal (Cong) said about 300 persons were coming back every day from the Gulf and sought a rehabilitation package for them.