{"id":667941,"date":"2026-10-31T00:03:54","date_gmt":"2026-10-31T04:03:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.malayalamdailynews.com\/english\/?p=667941"},"modified":"2026-10-31T18:21:52","modified_gmt":"2026-10-31T22:21:52","slug":"norka-care-premium-hike-sparks-widespread-protests-among-expatriates-muslim-league-national-vice-president-urges-government-intervention","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.malayalamdailynews.com\/english\/667941\/","title":{"rendered":"Norka Care Premium Hike Sparks Widespread Protests Among Expatriates; Muslim League National Vice President Urges Government Intervention"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

\"\"Thiruvananthapuram:<\/strong> Widespread protests have erupted among expatriate Malayalis over the steep increase in premium rates under the Norka Care insurance scheme. The sharp hike has raised serious concerns about the financial burden on expatriate families, particularly those already struggling with economic difficulties.<\/p>\n

Amid growing discontent within the expatriate community, Muslim League National Vice President and prominent expatriate businessman K. Zainul Abidin has urged the Kerala government to intervene immediately. He has written a letter to the state government highlighting the concerns and grievances of expatriates and demanding urgent measures to address the issue.<\/p>\n

The Norka Care insurance scheme, which has provided much-needed financial protection to lakhs of expatriate Malayalis and their families, has witnessed a substantial increase in premium rates. The hike is particularly significant for senior citizens and family insurance policies, placing an additional financial burden on vulnerable sections of the expatriate community.<\/p>\n

The increase is reportedly attributed to losses incurred by insurance companies due to rising medical treatment costs, particularly for serious illnesses such as cancer and other critical diseases.<\/p>\n

However, Zainul Abidin pointed out that ordinary expatriate workers, especially those employed in Gulf countries, are already facing considerable financial challenges. Many workers are struggling with rising living expenses, job insecurity, and other economic pressures, making it extremely difficult for them to afford the increased insurance premiums.<\/p>\n

He emphasized that imposing such a substantial financial burden could discourage many expatriate families from continuing their insurance coverage, potentially depriving them of essential healthcare protection.<\/p>\n

In his letter to the state government, Zainul Abidin stressed the importance of addressing the genuine concerns of expatriates and ensuring that the Norka Care scheme remains accessible and affordable.<\/p>\n

He urged the government to introduce an immediate subsidy to reduce the financial burden of increased premiums. He also demanded a comprehensive review and revision of the premium structure, particularly for senior citizens, low-income workers, and families dependent on expatriate earnings.<\/p>\n

He maintained that the primary objective of the insurance scheme should be to provide financial security and healthcare protection to expatriates rather than impose additional economic hardships on them.<\/p>\n

Several prominent expatriate organizations, including the Kerala Muslim Cultural Centre (KMCC), have also strongly opposed the steep increase in Norka Care premium rates.<\/p>\n

These organizations have expressed concern that the revised rates could make the scheme unaffordable for a large section of expatriate workers and their families.<\/p>\n

They have called upon the Kerala government to reconsider the premium hike and introduce practical measures to ensure that the benefits of the insurance scheme continue to reach ordinary expatriates.<\/p>\n

With protests gaining momentum, pressure is mounting on the state government to review the revised premium structure and provide relief to expatriate Malayalis who depend on the scheme for essential healthcare coverage.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Thiruvananthapuram: Widespread protests have erupted among expatriate Malayalis over the steep increase in premium rates under the Norka Care insurance scheme. The sharp hike has raised serious concerns about the financial burden on expatriate families, particularly those already struggling with economic difficulties. Amid growing discontent within the expatriate community, Muslim League National Vice President and prominent expatriate businessman K. Zainul Abidin has urged the Kerala government to intervene immediately. He has written a letter to the state government highlighting the concerns and grievances of expatriates and demanding urgent measures to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":667942,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47748],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-667941","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.malayalamdailynews.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/667941","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.malayalamdailynews.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.malayalamdailynews.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.malayalamdailynews.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.malayalamdailynews.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=667941"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.malayalamdailynews.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/667941\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":667943,"href":"https:\/\/www.malayalamdailynews.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/667941\/revisions\/667943"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.malayalamdailynews.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/667942"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.malayalamdailynews.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=667941"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.malayalamdailynews.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=667941"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.malayalamdailynews.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=667941"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}