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No gold did they find
Underneath any stone they
Touched and turned yet
Every stone they touched
Into solid gold they turned
-Vishwamitra Ganga Aashutosh
Mauritian poet
That, in
a nutshell, is the story of the 20-million strong Indian diaspora. The
journey began about 150 years ago when cheap indentured labour left India
to work in the cane fields and railway projects in British colonies. For
others, it began a few decades ago with professionals leaving Indian shores
in search for better paying jobs than the country could offer. But wherever
they went, Indians protected and nurtured their identity. And while the
local culture seeped into their language, art, music, cuisine or places
of religious worship, the basic Indianness was never forgotten.
 Now,
almost 55 years after India gained independence from British rule, the
Government has rediscovered this dispersed population and is taking steps
to bridge the gap with it.
"The Indian diaspora is an important force to reckon with in many
countries of the world and should be given pride of place in our own cultural
and economic policies and in diplomacy," says L. M. Singhvi, Member
of Parliament, who is also the chairperson of the government-appointed
High Level Committee (HLC) on the Indian diaspora.
The expert panel, which travelled around the world for 15 months, studied
the Indian diaspora, noting its achievements and the problems it faced.
The panel recognised how starting from manual labour Indian immigrants
worked their way up, building businesses and industries and eventually
becoming integral parts of the economy of their adopted homelands. They
educated their children, established themselves as professionals, artistes
and politicians. In some countries, they even rose to the highest political
office.
A report prepared by the HLC has identified the problems faced by the
Indian community and offered ways of addressing them. The report, which
is yet to be released, was presented to Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee a
few months ago. He accepted three proposals of the interim report. These
are:
January 9 to be celebrated every year as Pravasi Bharatiya Divas;
10 achievers among the diaspora to be honoured every year by the Indian
Government with Pravasi Bharatiya Samman awards;
The PIO (persons of Indian origin) card fee structure to be reviewed
and the issue of dual citizenship accepted in principle.
This was perhaps the first tangible step to recognise the overseas Indian.
In fact, so blatant had been the neglect that when Mahendra Choudhry was
ousted as prime minister in Fiji two years ago, the Government of India
turned a blind eye. "The Government must have a proactive policy
for people of Indian origin," he had insisted at the time. For the
HLC, the acceptance of its interim report was a major achievement and
an indication of how serious the Government was about addressing the concerns
of the diaspora.
The message that ambassador at large, Bhism Agnihotri, has spelt out
in his travels since he took charge about six months ago has been the
need to draw the diaspora into a global Indian family. "The idea
is that once this environment of a big family is there, then other things
also follow like investments. Look at the China story (where the overseas
Chinese invest a large amount in the mainland). We don't have such a thing
happening to India. That is because we need an emotional attachment. It
will take time, but I believe that things are moving and will bear tangible
fruit down the road."
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 PROBLEM |
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Overseas Indians feel there has always been a lack of recognition
from India to their achievements abroad.
 SOLUTION
NRI Day to be celebrated on Jan 9 every year. Pravasi Bharatiya
Samman awards to be presented to 10 achievers from the diaspora.
PROBLEM
The Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) Card scheme started in
March 1999 was too highly priced at $1,000.
 SOLUTION
A new two-tier fee structure will be introduced for the PIO
card. The card will be available at a lower fee for PIOs living
in developing countries.
PROBLEM
In the Gulf countries blue collar workers-many of them come
from Kerala-face a number of problems.
 SOLUTION
Welfare funds and insurance schemes for workers and Standard
Labour Agreement with host countries. Monitoring work contracts
and conditions.
PROBLEM
Bureaucratic hurdles and corruption discourage non-resident
Indians from investing in India.
 SOLUTION
SEZs will be set up for PIOs and NRIs. A governing board will
exercise all authority on behalf of the Government to eliminate
red tape.
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J.C. Sharma, member secretary of the HLC, also cites the case of China.
"The overseas Chinese have put $45 billion back into China,"
he says. "The extraordinarily successful global Indian community
is estimated to have an annual income of about $300 billion. The contribution
of the diaspora to India can also be sizeable. A funds inflow of $5-10
billion a year is well within its capacity," he adds.
However, Sharma stresses that more than just money, the biggest asset
of the Indian diaspora was its intellectual capital and the market reach
for products.
In fact, a large part of the diaspora does feel that it is payback time
now. While this may have been triggered by a love for India and a feeling
of belonging, many PIOs are anxious that their children also inherit these
feelings. To keep that link alive, they not only travel to India with
their children but also invest in their home country.
The HLC report briefly lists individual contributions and diaspora-propelled
philanthropic societies that are involved in social work in rural India.
Knowledge and intellectual contributions in the form of educational institutes
or personnel exchanges are also noted in the report. However, many members
of the diaspora gave up their good intentions after they encountered bureaucratic
hurdles.
Wherever the HLC team travelled, there was an oft-repeated request that
overseas Indians be provided a single window at which all their concerns
could be taken care of-be it in dealing with the authorities, investment
bureaus, local administration or any other Indian body.
A significant recommendation of the HLC report is the setting up of
an autonomous, empowered body structured on the lines of the Planning
Commission and headed by the prime minister as its ex-officio chairperson.
The organisation would have a full-time deputy chairperson of the rank
of a cabinet minister and five full-time members, a governing body and
an advisory council. Members of the diaspora would be eligible to become
members of the organisation provided they reside in India for a substantial
part of each year of his/her tenure. They can also be eligible to be members
of the governing body and advisory council. The proposed body would interact
with Parliament through a sub-committee of 11 MPs under the Standing Committee
on External Affairs.
To facilitate investment in India, the report proposes setting up of
special economic zones (SEZs) for projects by NRIs and PIOs. This would
also curb corruption. "A governing board that would exercise all
authority on behalf of the Government at such SEZs would ensure that the
NRI has to deal with only one accountable authority and not 20 different
people," says Sharma.
Dual citizenship is a demand that has been raised time and again, especially
by NRIs settled in the West. In the past, the demand was rejected because
it would have required an amendment in the Constitution. The HLC suggests
a minor change in the Citizenship Act of 1955 to facilitate this.
The team identified the US, Canada, UK, some European countries, Australia,
New Zealand and Singapore where NRIs and pios would be granted dual nationality.
Dual citizenship would, however, be granted only to those who satisfied
certain conditions which are in line with India's security concerns. The
HLC has also drafted a legislation to allow those who have renounced their
Indian passport for various reasons to regain Indian nationality.
Immigrant labour from India faces special problems, especially in the
Gulf countries. The HLC suggests the establishment of a welfare fund for
repatriated workers, monitoring and supervising employment contracts,
pre-departure counselling, launch of insurance schemes and negotiating
Standard Labour Export Agreement with the host countries.
The report is also sympathetic to women who are duped into fraudulent
marriages with NRIs. In a bid to prevent abuse, the committee recommends
a special cell to offer free legal counselling to parents contemplating
marrying their daughters to NRIs/PIOs.
For the diaspora, it has been a long journey away from home. But it
seems their perseverance and resolve to retain their Indian identity have
finally paid off.
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CURRENT
ISSUE MAY 13, 2002
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