KOCHI: The state government’s decision to charge a fee from expatriates for quarantine facilities is inhuman, UDF convener Benny Behanan has said. He also urged the government to disburse a minimum ex gratia of Rs 10 lakh to the family of each non-resident Keralite who expired in the Gulf countries due to the Covid-19. “As many as 103 persons have lost their lives in the Gulf region alone. The state government has the moral responsibility to provide financial aid to their families,” Behanan said in Kochi on Wednesday.
He claimed the amount for the compensation will only be half the fund spent by the government for organising the Loka Kerala Sabha twice. “The decision that the expatriates would have to pay for the quarantine facilities has exposed the real face of Pinarayi Vijayan. The government should facilitate the flight journey and quarantine of those returning,” the UDF convener added.