Permit direct NRI deposits- Kerala Govt’s Message to Center

The Centre should permit Non-Resident Keralites to invest in the state-owned
chit funds as there was no provision for the state to accept such deposits
directly, Kerala Finance Minister Thomas Isaac said on Saturday.

"More and more Keralites living abroad are showing interest to
deposit in the chit funds run by the Kerala State Financial Enterprises
but there is no provision for the state to receive such deposits directly,"
he told reporters here.

KSFE has introduced new chits following the overwhelming support received
after its earlier schemes, he said.

The interest rate on NRI deposits should also be increased to attract
foreign investments to the state, Isaac said.

Referring to the global economic crisis, the Minister said though tourism
and IT, regarded as two dynamic sectors of the state, had remained unaffected
so far, the scenario might change in the coming years.

"We have flight bookings for this entire year in the tourism sector
but the situation may not remain same from next year," he said.

Photo: Muroto city, View from Muroto Skyline Road 01 by Naokijp, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.