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Kerala government offers cheap air fares to poor NRKs

Trivandrum - Chandy said several airlines had agreed to provide free air tickets for the NRKs who have not been able to visit their home state due to unaffordable airfares.

With the government of India dragging a decision on scrapping the 5/20 eligibility rule for new airlines to fly abroad, the Kerala government has come out with a scheme to provide affordable air fares to non-resident Keralites (NRKs) who are not able to visit their home state for more than three years.
The scheme to be implemented with the help of airlines, affluent NRKs and various NRK organisations in the Middle East was unveiled by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy here on Wednesday. Talking to reporters after the cabinet meeting, Chandy said Non-resident Keralites Affairs Minister K C Joseph will coordinate the implementation of the scheme.
Chandy said several airlines had agreed to provide free air tickets for the NRKs who have not been able to visit their home state due to unaffordable airfares. He said that the Norka minister will prepare the list of such people with the help of NRK organisations.
The chief minister said priority would be given to those who have not been able to visit the state even once. He said there were many such people in Gulf countries. Chandy said that he knew personally one person who missed even his daughter's marriage for want of money to buy his ticket.
He said the state government had proposed Air Kerala to help such people. However, the government has not been able to take forward the project due to the 5/20 rule, which bars the Indian carriers from flying overseas until they complete five years of domestic service and have a fleet of 20 aircraft. The CM said the government is ready to launch Air Kerala once the rule is scrapped. "We have been hearing about moves to amend the rules for the last three years but the Civil Aviation Ministry is yet to issue the order."
The Air Kerala project was first proposed in 2005 when Chandy headed the government. The government had registered the Air Kerala International Services as a fully owned subsidiary of Cochin International Airport in February 2006.
On returning to power in 2011, Chandy revived the project considering the hardship faced by the NRKs due to high airfares and frequent cancellation of flights between Kerala and the Gulf countries. The project evoked positive interest from the various Malayali businessmen and NRKs in the Middle East.
The airline was proposed on the model of Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL), which is India's first PPP airport, by raising Rs2 billion through equity. While 26 per cent of shares will be held by the state government, CIAL and public sector undertakings, the remaining 74 per cent will be held by shareholders.
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