Welfare Fund for NRIs Proposed by MOIA

The proposal calls upon the government to make an initial investment
of Rs.1.5 billion, and insurance companies to make contributions
to the fund. NRIs could choose between a one-time registration and
an annual payment to the pool fund.

The MOIA proposal has suggested that the fee on emigration clearance
stamp be raised to Rs.300 from Rs.200 – the difference could
be taken for the NRI Welfare Fund. The Fund would be managed by
a Trust, with an advisory committee comprising 5 nominees of the
Central government and representatives from the State cabinets led
by the MOIA Cabinet minister.

The executive authority would rest with a senior bureaucrat,
leading a team of four civil officers from the states, a representative
of the Finance Ministry, and appointees from insurance firms
and corporate houses.

The Welfare scheme would function through
banks.
Apart from using the corpus fund for training Indians going
abroad for skilled and semi-skilled services, the resource would
ensure that NRIs returning home are adequately provided for
upon their return through a sustenance allowance.

The MOIA’s proposal would be placed before the External Affairs Ministry, the Finance Ministry and the Labour and Law ministries.

The Planning Commission would also have to scrutinize the proposal.

NRI remittances from the Gulf region account for half of India’s total remittances, and the Government is responsible for the protection of the overseas Indian worker during and after his stay abroad.

Photo: Be Indian Embassy 01 by Achim Raschka (talk), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.