Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday sparked off a row as he announced that with the number of Covid-19 cases witnessing an upswing with arrival of Keralalites from abroad, they will now have to pay for the quarantine.
"The rates will be affordable to all," Vijayan said this new paid quarantine would begin from Wednesday.
According to the quarantine rules, all those who return from abroad have to go for institutional quarantine for a week and then remain at their home for another week.
Expressing his strong resentment was senior Lok Sabha member and RSP leader N.K. Premachandran, who said that no one must forget what the state government had told the Kerala High Court that adequate rooms are ready to keep the returning diaspora in quarantine, once they come back.
"The government said they have identified 2.35 lakhs beds of which 1.53 lakhs beds are already ready to accommodate the returnees. They also pointed out that 9,000 rooms are ready for those willing to pay at private hotels. So today Vijayan has done a somersault on this, as just 11,000 people have arrived and things have gone haywire and are asking the diaspora to pay," said Premachandran.
But putting a brave face was the lone CPI-M Lok Sabha member from the state, A.M. Ariff who said that he was always worried on how a small state like Kerala with limited resources can provide free quarantine accomodation.
"Kerala is a fund-starved state and all know that the finances are also poor. I on several occasions was wondering if it would be possible to provide free quarantine for all the diaspora who returns," said Ariff.
T.K. Ashiq, speaking to a TV channel from UAE, said this was an astonishing remark from the Chief Minister's side.