Kerala, Centre at odds over accepting foreign aid over floods

New Delhi: India’s decision not to accept foreign aid in the wake of the Kerala floods seems to be putting the central and state governments at odds over the issue. Issac’s view found resonance with that of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan with the latter telling the Indian Express newspaper that the UAE “cannot be considered as any other nation” as “Indians, especially Keralites, have contributed immensely in their nation building.” Indeed, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid had in his Twitter post on Saturday recalled the special link between Kerala and the UAE, stating that “the people of Kerala have always been and are still part of our success story in the UAE” as he made his appeal for aid from UAE residents. Indeed, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid had in a Twitter post on Saturday recalled the special link between the state of Kerala and the UAE, stating that “the people of Kerala have always been and are still part of our success story in the UAE” as he made his appeal for aid from UAE residents. “New Delhi accepted aid that was wanted by the state government,” he said adding that India had refused medicines, for example, deeming it had enough supplies at home to meet the demands. In 2013, when flash floods and landslides affected Uttarakhand, the then Indian foreign ministry spokesman Syed Akbaruddin when asked about India accepting foreign aid said: “As a general policy in case of rescue and relief operations, we have followed the practice that we have adequate ability to respond to emergency requirements.” He had however added that if India needed assistance in reconstruction, New Delhi would “examine how they fit into the broader plan in terms of rehabilitation and reconstruction in the region and take a call at that stage.” According to Mansingh, given that the floods in Kerala were the worst in a century, the central government should take a decision after taking inputs from the state government.