Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 29 (IANS) Chief Minister Oommen Chandy Thursday said his government will always be considerate to the needs, demands and views of the Non-Resident Keralites (NRKs).

'The very fact that in 2001 the then chief minister A.K. Antony started a separate department under a minister for NRKs speaks for itself the way we consider NRKs,' said Chandy, while inaugurating the two-day Global NRK Meet 2011 here.

Representatives of numerous NRK organisations, especially from various Middle East countries, took part in the meeting.

'The state government has drafted a three-point agenda. The first is to bring back the Keralites caught in legal tangles or who are in jail due to procedural irregularities in the Middle East, the second is to help the people duped by unscrupulous agents.

'And lastly to bring back people who are convalescing after accidents and those who are seriously ill... We need the help of the NRK organisations to help us identify those who need help,' added Chandy.

State Minister for NRKs K.C. Joseph said that if not for the NRKs, the state economy would have drifted.

'There are around 34.5 lakh NRKs who have contributed a staggering Rs.50,000 crore into the banks of the state. There was a time when the Indian government had to pledge gold and today it's the non-resident Indians who are the backbone of the country's economy,' said Joseph.

'We are quite aware of the dwindling job opportunities in the Middle East... We will come out with programmes for skill improvement of NRKs and also those who are trying to go abroad,' added Joseph.

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