BELAGAVI: A delegation of Non Resident Indians (NRIs) hailing from Karnataka, led by deputy chairperson of NRI forum and MLC Dr Arathi Krishna, on Thursday met Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar at Suvarna Vidhana Soudha and urged them to create a separate ministry in the state government to deal with their issues.
Dr Ronald Colaco, a businessman in the Middle East, reminded the government that the Congress had promised the same in its election manifesto in 2023.
“Like in Kerala, setting up a separate ministry and a single window system for the clearance of files will help the state get investments from NRIs easily. The current system is cumbersome as it involves visiting several different departments,” he said.
The 42-member delegation from 34 countries also met Assembly Speaker UT Khader, Legislative Council Chairman Basavaraj S Horatti and Urban Development Minister Byrati Suresh.
Siddaramaiah promised the delegation that he would take a call on their demands after consulting the party high command. Shivakumar also promised them that a decision would be taken in the next budget, Dr Krishna told TNIE.
There are around 18 lakh NRIs from Karnataka living in different countries, said Dr Krishna, who will join Leader of Opposition in Loksabha Rahul Gandhi when he visits Germany to participate in the Indian Overseas Congress event.