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India fetes its
diaspora
By Priyanka Bhardwaj
NEW DELHI - This is the third year running
that India is celebrating its diaspora, numbering
20 million, which is second only to the Chinese
diaspora, spread over 110 countries in five
continents with an estimated combined income of
US$160 billion, equal to nearly 35% of India's
gross domestic product.
Dubbed the Pravasi
Bharatiya Diwas (PBD) or Indian Diaspora Day, it
is an occasion hosted by the Indian government and
industry body the Federation of Indian Chambers of
Commerce and the Industry for Non-Resident Indians
(NRIs) and Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) to
connect, do business, exchange visiting cards and
emails, set up meetings, experience nostalgia, air
their grievances and feel proud about their roots.
There are also reports that many turned up to
scout for prospective and eligible Indian brides
and grooms, the traditional way in which marriages
are arranged in this part of the world.
The three-day PBD, which ended on the
weekend, was a spectacle held in India's
commercial capital Mumbai - with a toned down
entertainment element due to the tsunami tragedy -
and witnessed over 2,000 delegates taking part,
interacting with the cream of Indian state and
union government, business representatives,
scientists, scholars, legal luminaries,
journalists and others.
Clearly there is a
need at both ends - an unshackled Indian economy
looking to successful Indians settled across the
globe to invest in purely business propositions of
retail, entertainment and infrastructure to other
spheres of human development, such as health care,
education and disaster management in the face of
the tsunami tragedy. The effort is to replicate
some of the success of the Chinese diaspora, which
has contributed vastly to China's economy, least
of all in drawing foreign investment by the
billions. Indians abroad, on the other hand, look
to return something to the land from where they
commenced their success stories, as well as take a
serious and first-hand look at the opportunities
being created as India progresses.
Some of
the diaspora personalities who participated were
cabinet ministers S Samy Vellu of Malaysia and T
Shanmugaratnam of Singapore, writers Amitava Ghosh
and Shashi Tharoor, who also represents the United
Nations, Indian tennis great Vijay Amritraj, who
is settled in the US, Mauritius Vice President A R
Bundhun, leading Dubai-based entrepreneur Ram
Buxani and Trinidad and Tobago's leader of the
opposition and former prime minister Basdeo
Pandey.
Indeed, the PBD, which was the
brainchild of the previous government under former
prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, has not
suffered due to the regime change and now acts as
an effective bridge between Indians here and
abroad. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh made
sure that he was personally present to address the
gathering as well as welcome the delegates, after
which he rushed to Chennai to oversee tsunami
relief operations.
An indication
of the seriousness with which Manmohan's
government views Indians abroad is the appointment of a
minister of overseas Indians affairs, with
the sole responsibility to take care of their
issues. The minister in charge, Jagdish Tytler,
has been commended for some serious work on
this front, despite overlap as well as resistance
from other ministries who guard their areas
of work zealously. Over the past few months,
Tytler has even had to fight for office space,
but has managed to take up the cause of
Indians working abroad, especially in the Persian Gulf
countries where there are more than 3 million Indian workers.
The protectorate of emigrants has now been
shifted from the Labor Ministry and brought under
the charge of the Overseas Ministry to
liaison effectively with Indian workers and monitor
their conditions abroad. The ministry played a
crucial role in negotiating the release of Indian
truck drivers who were kidnapped in Iraq last
year. Tytler himself has been traveling to meet
NRIs, understand their problems and bring about
a focused approach. He has forwarded a proposal
to the prime minister to set up special courts
to deal with property disputes concerning NRIs,
a major issue faced by them, given the
long-drawn-out legal processes in India.
Manmohan did not disappoint the audience
at the PBD either, and announced that dual
citizenship will now be extended to all persons of
Indian origin, provided, of course, the country of
residence allows it. In 2004, the benefit of
overseas Indian citizenship was made available to
persons of Indian origin (PIOs) of 16 developed
countries from Europe, apart from the US,
Australia, Canada and New Zealand. Though dual
citizenship does not confer voting rights, it will
go a long way in easing purchase and disposal of
property, including agricultural land and
plantations, as well as ease visa requirements
that put a limit to the period of stay in India to
180 days.
"I am happy to announce that we
have decided to extend the facility of dual
citizenship to all overseas Indians who migrated
from India after January 26, 1950, as long as
their home countries allow dual citizenship under
their local laws," said Manmohan. "I do hope that
a day will come when every single overseas Indian
who wishes to secure Indian citizenship will
actually be able to do so," the prime minister
added.
Tytler was at pains to point out
that the government was not keen only on dollars
being pumped in by overseas Indians. Rather, he
said, it wanted to get the PIOs emotionally
involved with the country, the dual citizenship
being one such move in this direction. "PIOs are
already involved in various projects in their home
states, particularly Punjab, Gujarat, Kerala and
to some extent Maharashtra. With the country
opening up, they are naturally interested in
investing here and sharing their knowledge. We are
not targeting them only for investment. We want
them to experience the country," he said.
While it is true that the PBD is showcased
by the government as an event for some native
bonding, it is lost to nobody that 15 states lined
up numerous projects that would interest the NRIs.
The biggest state of Uttar Pradesh roped in
Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan to showcase
the region for investment, while chief ministers
of five states made personal presentations to
impress the audience. Indian cabinet ministers,
such as the minister for human resource
development, Arjun Singh, the minister for science
and technology, Kapil Sibal, and the minister of
tourism, Renuka Chowdhury, also addressed the
conference.
The concluding session saw 11
noted overseas Indians being conferred the Pravasi
Bharatiya Samman (award) by President A P J Abdul
Kalam. Among them included telecommunications
expert Sam Pitroda, Hong Kong-based businessman M
Arunachalam, South African social activist Amina
Cachalia, German litterateur Alokeranjan Dasgupta,
Manila-based scientist Sant S Virmani,
Britain-based political scientist Lord Bhiku
Chhotalal Parekh, US-based political scientist
Sunil Khilnani and United Arab Emirates
businessman M A Yusaffali. Awardees who could not
be present were economist Jagdish Bhagwati,
Hollywood filmmaker Manoj Night Shyamalan,
novelist Vikram Seth and Indo-Fijian golfer Vijay
Singh, currently ranked number one in the world.
All the above-mentioned are of Indian origin who
have done the country proud.
"PIOs can
contribute not just to America, but to the whole
universe," said the president, whose speech drew
great applause and two standing ovations from a
crowd that lapped in his words. He also invited
Indians abroad to return to the country, saying,
"India is today a much better place to live in,
ready to deal with the world in terms of
equality."
As Rajiv Srivastava, who has
settled in Switzerland and works for a telecom
company, says, "Every Indian who has made it big
anywhere in the world longs to give back something
to the country where the story started." The first
task that Rajiv undertook on his arrival to India
was to watch the movie Swades, starring
superstar Shahrukh Khan, directed by Ashutosh
Gowarikar, whose first movie Lagaan had
made it to the Oscars. Swades is about the
angst of the protagonist, who is doing very well
in the US but longs to do something for his
motherland India as well. In the end Shahrukh
gives up his job and shifts to India. "I did not
like the ending," says Rajiv, "most Indians abroad
would like to continue with their successful
stints abroad, but at the same time take out time
and money to re-invest in India." The underlying
aspect, though, is to give back something
worthwhile to the land where the journey started.
Priyanka Bhardwaj is a
post-graduate in history from St Stephen's
college, Delhi University.
(Copyright
2005 Asia Times Online Ltd. All rights reserved.
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