Indian Diaspora

Indian Diaspora

News: Prime Minister Modi recently inaugurated the 17th Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas convention in Madhya Pradesh on the occasion of Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas (PBD). 

What is Diaspora?
• The term diaspora traces its roots to the Greek diaspeiro, which means dispersion. The Indian diaspora has grown manifold since the first batch of Indians were taken to counties in the eastern pacific and the Caribbean islands under the ‘Girmitiya’ arrangement as indentured labourers.
• The Indian Diaspora is classified into three categories – Non Resident Indians (NRI), Person of Indian Origin (PIO) and Overseas Citizen of India (OCI). 
• According to the World Migration Report, 2022, India has the largest emigrant population in the world in 2020, making it the top origin country globally, followed by Mexico, Russian and China. 
• According to the World Bank Migration and Development Brief, released in 2022, for the first time a single country, India, is on track to receive more than USD 100 billion in yearly remittances. 
• The World Migration Report notes that India, China, Mexico, the Philippines and Egypt are (in descending order) among the top five remittance recipient countries.

What is the role of Diaspora in country’s progress?
• Diasporas are symbol of a nation’s pride and represent their country internationally. They help in building country’s value internationally through their huge success stories. 
• Many emigrants make huge investments into their home countries in domestic financial, real estates, services and technological sectors helping in huge inflow of capitals that boost local economy and create huge jobs. 
• One of the greatest economic contribution of Indian diaspora has been in terms of remittances. Remittances make an invaluable contribution by aiding in socio-economic development, poverty reduction and changes in consumption behavior in rural areas. 
• An important advantage in having a large emigrant group is furthering of nation’s diplomacy through people to people contact. For example, ethnic Indians in the USA successfully lobbied for Indo-US nuclear deal. 
• Diaspora play important role in influencing policies and politics of its host country in favour of its country of origin and also, development of good ties and relations between both countries. The Indian diaspora is not just part of India’s soft power but also a fully transferable political vote bank as well.
• They can potentially help in technology transfer as well which will facilitate innovation and enhance our competency in variety of sectors.