The Kerala government on Thursday sought the urgent intervention of the Union government to address problems faced by expatriates, who are hoping to return to their workplace in the Gulf countries. Chief Secretary VP Joy wrote a letter to Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla, pointing out that the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states, except Qatar and Bahrain have denied entry to Indian workers citing the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Keralites are reaching Qatar and Bahrain through other nations, including Nepal and Sri Lanka. If they want to travel to Saudi Arabia, they need to undergo a quarantine of two weeks," the letter said. The Kerala government also added that members of GCC were not allowing Keralites to return and resume work despite having received two doses of Covaxin as it does not have the approval of the World Health Organisation.
"Those who have received one shot of Pfizer or Sinopharm vaccine from abroad are unable to get the second dose from India and therefore they can’t enter back to GCC countries," it said. The CPI(M)-led government urged the Union government to take up the matter with Gulf nations in order to facilitate the return of Indian workers.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan took to Facebook, saying that the Union government should discuss with governments of the Gulf countries and ensure that the struggling expats can reach back. “The unemployment issue of expats is a problem in the country’s fiscal itself. Therefore, measures should be taken without delay to solve this problem, the letter sent by the Chief Secretary added,” wrote Pinarayi Vijayan.
Meanwhile, the Kerala government recently reduced the gap between first and second dose of Covishield vaccine for expats, to four to six weeks from the 12 to 16 weeks prescribed by the Union government.