Over 25,000 expatriates based in the United Arab Emirates without proper work permits may return to Kerala by March 31 with their Gulf dreams shattered.
They are among 40,000 Indians who are expected to take advantage of the general amnesty declared by the Gulf state as part of its efforts to flush out illegal migrants, according to information received by the Kerala government from the Indian mission in the UAE.
The state cabinet has constituted a five-member sub-committee under Non-Resident Keralites Affairs Minister M M Hassan to oversee the evacuation.
Chief Minister A K Antony told reporters after a cabinet meeting on Wednesday that the state government would do everything possible to help those returning.
But the people know better. The cash-strapped government has not been able to do anything so far for the rehabilitation of over 700,000 people who have returned from Gulf countries after opportunities began tapering off in the last decade.
The return emigration has been witnessing a steady increase over the years with the process gaining momentum in the nineties.
According to a study conducted by the Centre for Development Studies (CDS), Thiruvananthapuram, about 50 per cent of the estimated 1.6 million Keralites working in the Gulf countries have returned.
But the scenario in Kerala is bad with the number of unemployed swelling to 4.5 million.
A recent study by Dr B A Prakash, professor of economics in the Kerala University, revealed that more than 34 per cent of those who have returned from the Gulf had sold their property and 9 percent even their houses to sustain themselves. They have been mounting pressure on the state government for a rehabilitation scheme with the help of the central government.
The chances of re-migration are dim with most Gulf countries aggressively substituting foreign workers with natives.
Dr S Irudayarajan, a CDS member, told rediff.com that it was time for Keralites to look at other job markets.
However, he feels that the first generation of Gulf migrants, who are mostly skilled and unskilled construction workers, may not fit the emerging job markets. According to a rough estimate, about 16 per cent of them have had only primary school education, eighty have no formal technical training at all and only 20 per cent had a certificate, diploma or degree in a technical subject.
"A section of them might be able to upgrade their skills. We have already submitted a recommendation to the state government in this regard," Dr Irudayarajan said.
© 2025