· Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan offered to help flood-hit Kerala.
· Islamabad’s statement came a day after India said it would depend on “domestic resources” for providing short and long term help in Kerala.
· It was understood that by ‘existing policy’, the MEA was indicating at the decision taken in 2004 to avoid foreign support in the context of the deadly tsunami that affected a large number of countries in the Indian Ocean region.
· However, India’s decision to decline aid from abroad drew criticism from veteran diplomats and officials who said that the Central government should have been more considerate regarding the offer of support from the Gulf countries, especially from the United Arab Emirates that has offered ₹700 crore.
· Former Foreign Secretary and National Security Adviser Shiv Shankar Menon made a distinction between foreign support for immediate relief and long term rehabilitation.
· He added that the 2004 decision was not to accept foreign participation in relief but accept it for long term rehabilitation case by case, elaborating that rescue teams in Kerala required no foreign help, but such help could be utilised for “rebuilding houses, bridges, roads etc.
· Some diplomats have however maintained that the issue of aid for Kerala should be resolved through internal consultation at the earliest to avoid any long term fallout.
Source : The Hindu