KOCHI: Even as the depreciation of rupee is good news for Kerala, which is largely dependent on remittances and exports, not many of the migrants from the state are able to make use of the windfall. With two major festivals, Onam and Eid, just over, most of them had already sent their savings to their relatives back home before the current slide of the rupee began. Remittances to Kerala are estimated to be equivalent of one-fifth of the state's GDP, and its migrant population is said to be around 2.1 million. The Indian currency hit a fresh two-year low of Rs 50 against the dollar on Friday, and it gained marginally after reports of RBI intervention. Nearly 80 per cent of the remittances to Kerala are described as distress remittances, which the migrants send home every month to support their families. Only those who had the capacity to hold back their savings are able to leverage on the rupee slide, and they constitute the remaining 20 per cent. Migrants from Kerala in other countries are also expected to reap harvest of the current hike in dollar value.
TOI
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