Flood: Ker Ministers to visit foreign countries seeking aid

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his cabinet colleagues will visit various foreign countries from October 17 to mobilise funds from the expatriate community to rebuild the flood-battered state.

Each minister would visit different countries from October 17 to 21, Vijayan told reporters here.

The objective was to consolidate and collect aid from non-resident Keralites (NRKs) there, Vijayan told reporters here.

"The major agenda before the government is to rebuild the state with the support of people from all walks of life.

Mobilisation of funds is a major challenge to achieve the target...that's why the ministers have decided to visit foreign countries to mobilise funds from NRKs.

The expatriates have already contributed to the Chief Minister's relief fund in a remarkable way," he said.

He also expressed hope that expatriates could play a vital role in rebuilding the state, which had suffered huge damage in the torrential rains that lashed the state over a month ago claiming hundreds of lives and leaving a trail of destruction.

"The ministers will visit 17 foreign countries including that in the Gulf and in Europe," he said.

Vijayan would visit Abdu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah on October 17, 19 and 20, according to an official release.

The chief minister said the state has received sanction to seek technical support from the Netherlands for reconstruction of Kuttanad, located below the mean sea level.

According to the Rapid Disaster Need Assessment conducted by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, the total loss incurred by various sectors of the state was to the tune of Rs 25,050 crore, Vijayan said.

However, the actual loss in the industries and trade sectors had not been assessed by the ADB and the World Bank team, he said.

A large number of people have to be rehabilitated, he said, adding that the price of land for rehabilitation of such people would alone come to around Rs 400 crore.

"The government is conducting an elaborate study in this regard and has decided to submit a memorandum to the Centre seeking a special package for rehabilitation initiatives," the chief minister added.