Only 2% of Gulf NRIs have savings back home: study

DUBAI : Only a miniscule 2% of Gulf NRI households in India have any saving out of the remittances made from here by expatriates, though the NRI families live a comfortable life, according to a survey. As high as 98% of the NRIs, mostly middle and low income workers from south India who were interviewed through a questionnaire, said their families will not be able to maintain the comfortable lifestyle if they returned home.

34% of the NRIs had no savings at all whatsoever and were eking out a hand-to-mouth existence while 31% were sending money home every month, 24% every two months and 11% every three months.

The results of the survey would mean that the NRIs here, many of whom work on low salaries and live without families to support people at home, will have to continue to slog it out in the Gulf as the alternative of returning home does not hold out a pretty future, said K V Shamsudheen, president of Pravasibandhu, an NRI body which conducted the survey.

Only 10% of the 10,100 people interviewed for the survey had their family living with them in the Gulf. The people who were surveyed were in different age groups but the maximum of 4,857 were in the age group of 31 to 40 while 10% of the total were unmarried.

Shamsudheen said only JM Mutual Fund had introduced a scheme called JM Pravasi Bandhu Fund targeting the low income NRIs. Only 2% of Gulf NRIs have savings back home: study The scheme would soon be implemented, he said.

The government of India was planning to introduce an insurance scheme for NRIs before the second pravasi bharati day celebrations in January next year. Kerala has already started an insurance scheme for non-resident Indians from the state.

We are planning to organise presentations of the scheme in English, Hindi, Tamil, Kanada and Thelunge in all GCC countries. Interested regional organisations may contact Shamsuddin to organise presentations for their members on 00971506467801 or email: kvshams@barjeelsecurities