Major incentives for NRIs finalised
Wednesday, 15/05/2013
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Chandigarh : Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal on Tuesday announced the fructification of promises made to NRIs during the NRI Sammellan and gave final touches to an integrated plan to make NRIs lasting partners in the progress and prosperity of the state.
Accompanied by NRI Affairs Minister Bikram Singh Majithia, the Deputy Chief Minister reviewed the implementation of the decisions besides giving final touches to a holistic plan.
Sukhbir said the purpose of lasting relations with the Punjabi Diaspora was not to seek investment but to strengthen their emotional bond with their motherland. He said that under the New Housing Policy and Investment Policy, Punjab has reserved 10 per cent quota for Punjabi Diaspora in all PUDA approved schemes and industrial estates besides setting up a separate link for fast track approval in the industrial investment portal. He said that with the concerted efforts of all departments, this major promise has been made a reality.
Impressing upon the need for taking care of the families of NRIs to give them emotional support, Deputy CM issued directions to increase the number of marriage registration officers from present 22 to 190 so as to expedite the registration of their marriages, understanding the limited time available to them during their stay in the country.
He said that earlier only DROs were empowered to register the marriages but now the powers have been delegated to all tehsildars and naib tehsildars. He said that he has issued directions to all field officers to be accessible to NRIs and perform their job on priority.
Describing compulsory registration of marriages and Human Smuggling Acts as path breaking initiatives, Sukhbir said, “With the Compulsory Marriage Registration Act, we would be able to tackle fraudulent marriages by NRIs and with the Human Smuggling Act, we would be able to tackle the menace illegal travel agents, playing with the lives and hard earned money of Punjabi youth, who were being lured to foreign lands on illegal permits.”
Majithia informed the Deputy Chief Minister that Punjab Government was in process of taking a path breaking decision, in which an NRI can get tenant evicted from multiple properties, multiple times. He said that earlier he was allowed only once for a single property. He informed that similar amendment was also being effected for rural properties also.
Meeting the long pending demands of NRIs to guard their properties in Punjab, Majithia apprised the Deputy Chief Minister said that a Punjab Government Undertaking PESCO would supply professionally trained ex-servicemen guards for this purpose on a nominal payment. He said that NRIs, on visit to Punjab, can also seek deployment of PESCO guards for personal security. He said that PESCO has been asked to raise a separate battalion for providing security to NRIs.
It was informed at the meeting that one more NRI police station has been opened in NRI dominant district Amritsar. Sukhbir said that instructions have already been issued to seek approval of DSP before registering any FIR against NRI to check bogus complaints.
The Home Department informed that Punjab and Haryana High Court has been requested to set up three Sub Divisional Judicial Magistrate courts at Moga, Jalandhar and Hoshiarpur and an Appellate Court at Jalandhar for taking up civil and criminal cases of NRIs and requisite funds have been provided for the same.
