West Asia crisis: Kerala launches counselling support to expats, families back home

The ongoing conflict between Iran and the Israel-U.S. combine has prompted the Kerala government to provide counselling services to expatriates and their families back home. The closure of airspace across West Asia, followed by the partial reopening of certain corridors, has brought some relief to expatriates. However, war-mongering on various platforms, including by a section of the media that has portrayed the crisis out of proportion, has compelled the State government to extend counselling support to the overseas diaspora and their families in Kerala, according to government officials.

Speaking to The Hindu, Ajith Kolassery, Chief Executive Officer of NoRKA-Roots, the government agency working for the welfare of non-resident Keralites, said that debris from weapons intercepted and neutralised by the air defence systems of various GCC countries falling in residential areas remains a concern. However, anxiety triggered by exaggerated portrayals of the crisis by a section of the media is causing greater distress to expatriates and their families, he added.

Helpline numbers

With the support of the National Health Mission, the State government has now deployed counsellors under the ‘Tele-Manas’ counselling service to provide assistance to those in need, both through the NoRKA Help Desk and other platforms. Expatriate Keralites and their family members can access the services by calling +91-471-2430001 or the toll-free number 14416 (for callers within India), available 24 hours a day. Additionally, the agency has formed support groups in the Gulf countries to ensure assistance to expatriate Keralites, he said. Keralites number around 30-35 lakh in GCC countries alone.

Meanwhile, the partial reopening of the United Arab Emirates’ airspace has provided significant relief for stranded transit passengers and those requiring emergency travel. Calicut International Airport handled around eight flights to and from West Asian cities, including Muscat, Riyadh, and Jeddah. The Thiruvananthapuram airport also operated services to Muscat and has scheduled two flights, an Oman Air service and an Air India Express service, to Muscat on Friday. Air India Express has also announced that it will operate special flights from Ras Al Khaimah connecting Delhi, Kochi, and Mumbai until March 7. Meanwhile, SpiceJet, which had scheduled special flights to Kozhikode and Kochi from Dubai on March 6, cancelled the services due to airspace restrictions.