Kerala seeks PM's intervention to bring back bodies of NRIs who died due to reasons other than COVID-19

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intervention in bringing back the bodies of NRIs whose death occurred due to reasons other than COVID-19.

In a letter written to PM Modi, Pinaray Vijayan said that he had received grievances received from the Non-Residential Keralites Association in the Gulf countries on the delay caused in bringing home the mortal remains of NRIs. India’s COVID-19 Tally Rises to 23,077 With 1684 New Cases in Past 24 Hours, Death Toll Mounts to 718.

The Kerala CM stated that a “clearance certificate” from the Indian Embassies concerned is required to process the application for bringing home the mortal remains of the dead. He added that Indian Embassies are insisting on production of a no-objection certificate from the Ministry of Home Affairs. Notably, due to the coronavirus pandemic, all domestic and international passengers flights have been suspended by the Indian government. Mortal remains are usually brought cargo planes.

Currently, there are around 25 lakh Keralites living abroad. Around 90 percent of Keralites work in Gulf countries. In the wake of the outbreak of coronavirus, the Kerala government launched an online medical facility for the non-resident Keralites earlier this month. The state government, under the leadership of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, has set up five COVID-19 help-desks for the expatriate Malayalee community.

In Kerala, the number of coronavirus cases rose to 447on Friday. Four people also lost their lives due to the deadly virus, including a four-month-old child. The southern state of India has the highest recovery rate of coronavirus patients. Till now, more than 70 percent of COVID-19 patients have recovered. There are currently, 120 active coronavirus cases in the state.