Thiruvananthapuram | Chief Minister of Keralam V D Satheesan on Wednesday said the cabinet decided to dissolve the current Loka Kerala Sabha as none of the decisions taken in its three past conferences have been implemented and there were allegations of huge expenditure and extravaganace in connection with the way it was conducted.
Satheesan, addressing a press conference here after a cabinet meeting chaired by him, said that in place of the Loka Kerala Sabha (LKS), a new and more effective system will be started.
"There will be a platform for pravasis (expatriates) and there will be an alternative mechanism to address their issues," the CM said.
He said that the decisions taken in the first LKS conference were not implemented by the time the second one was held.
"The decisions taken in the subsequent second and third LKS conferences were also not implemented and we, when in the opposition, had alleged huge expenditure and extravagance in connection with the conduct of the LKS events," Satheesan said.
It was for all these reasons that it was decided to dissolve the current LKS, he added.
He said that besides providing an alternative mechanism for the expatriates, there will also be a major project to convert their remittance into an investment economy for the state.
"For that, a cabinet sub-committee comprising the Industries, Home, Health and Water Resources ministers and chaired by the CM has been constituted," Satheesan said.
The CM on Monday had said the UDF government had not changed its political decision to discontinue the Loka Kerala Sabha in the form in which it was held under the previous LDF administration.
The state government was not considering organising the Loka Kerala Sabha as it was done during the time of the LDF government, he had said.
The LKS is a platform created by the Keralam government for the cultural, socio-political and economic integration of the Non-Resident Keralites across the world with their home state.
The CM had also said that the government has not allocated a single rupee for the sixth edition of the Loka Kerala Sabha and funds have been allocated only for the administrative expenses of the LKS Secretariat office and for certain programmes, including the Business Leadership Meet organised through the Non-Resident Keralites Affairs (NORKA) department.
"Expatriate welfare schemes are a matter of top priority for the government. Funds have also been allocated for the initial work of implementing such proposals," he had said.
