NRI

Sharjah-bound Keralites may get driving license in Kerala soon

The Sharjah government has also decided to consider the request to construct a family city and a Kerala cultural center in the city.

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Driving licenses valid in Sharjah to be issued in Kerala for those going to the UAE, and an Arabic Study Center in Kerala are among the recommendations accepted in principle by the visiting Supreme Council Member and ruler of Sharjah, Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, said a joint communique issued by Sharjah and the Kerala government on Sept. 26.

As a token of the state’s appreciation for the visiting dignitary, Kerala has decided to give land to construct the UAE Consulate, which is currently housed in a rented building in the state capital city, Thiruvananthapuram.

Besides the above two proposals, the Sharjah government has also decided to consider seriously the demand that Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had put before him on Sept. 25 – to construct a family city and a Kerala cultural center over 20 acres of land in Sharjah.

Of the 20 acres, 10 acres would be to set up a family center containing apartment blocks besides a state-of-the-art hospital.

The proposed cultural center would showcase various cultural aspects of Kerala and be a permanent venue for conducting cultural programs and also an Ayurveda center.

In order to see that the initiatives become a reality, a joint high power committee of officials from Kerala and Sharjah will be set up soon.

The Sharjah ruler, who is in Kerala since Sept. 24, has held two rounds of meetings with Vijayan. On Sept. 25, he will be in Kochi to attend a private function being organised by the Middle East business honcho M.A. Yusuf Ali, and the next day, he will leave for Jaipur.

Indians in the UAE comprise the largest chunk of the population, at over 2 million, and are mostly from Kerala and other south Indian states. Indian migrants form over 17 per cent of the total population of the UAE.

— IANS

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