The Industries Department proposes to reserve 5% of land in industrial parks for Non-Resident Keralites (NoRKs), anticipating the challenge likely to be posed by returning expatriates and to tap the potential of expatriate investments.
“As much as 5% of allottable area in industrial estates will be reserved for NoRKs,” proposes the draft policy.
“The policy will be accorded Cabinet approval this month and the reservation of land will come into effect accordingly. The reservation of land for NoRKs is aimed at serving twin objectives – rehabilitation of returning expatriates and as an inducement to attract investments from NoRKs,” Industries Minister A.C. Moideen told The Hindu .
He said while reservation would be applicable to all new industrial parks, in existing parks it would be subject to availability of land.
The proposal will be implemented in consultation with NoRKA-Roots during 2018-19, department sources said. The department is awaiting a government order to start working on the proposal.
The reservation will be applicable to all existing parks under the department and various agencies such as the Kerala Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation, Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation, Kerala Small Industries Development Corporation (SIDCO), and District Industries Centres. The allocation will be subject to availability of land for which an assessment will be undertaken.
The department has industrial estates in all districts except Wayanad, accounting for a collective land mass of 2,440 acres. This is in addition to around 1,000 acres with the KSIDC and nearly 3,000 acres with Kinfra.
The government had presented the proposal to reserve land for NoRKs at the recently held World Kerala Sabha, where many prospective expatriate Malayalis evinced interest in investing in Kerala, sources said.
Mr. Moideen said the possibility of linking the proposal with the ongoing projects of NoRKA-Roots would also be explored.
A NoRKA-Roots official said the agency was open to all such proposals that would further the cause of returning expatriates. “We have a programme called Norka Department Project for Returned Emigrants (NDPREM), which could be linked to the proposal,” he said.
The NDPREM is a rehabilitation package to help returning NoRKs find a reasonable and steady income, for which NoRKA- Roots has entered into MoUs with major banks.
Agencies such as the Kerala State Backward Classes Development Corporation and the Kerala State Pravasi Welfare Development – Cooperative Society [PRAVASIS Ltd.] are also associating with the project.
