asianaffairs-Feb 2008
                                          
                             Indians Abroad

New initiatives at Pravasi – 08

Both investments by overseas Indians in India and inward fund flow from the richer Indians abroad has been modest, comments Subhash Chopra

  Lord Karan Bilimoria, recipient of this year’s Pravasi Bharati Samman award, said he was delighted to hear Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announce the formation of Prime Minister’s Global Advisory Council of Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) to tap the knowledge, expertise and talent of the best of the Indian diaspora from all over the world.
   Bilimoria said he had made the suggestion for setting up such a council of about 25 PIOs out of the 25 million strong Indian diaspora from over 130 countries at a previous Pravasi gathering for a focused action strategy for interaction between the mother country and settlers abroad. The world had woken up to the reality of global India and the arrival of global Indians on the world stage and it was time people realised the vast potential of opportunities offered by the country. He also praised the government’s earlier initiative of setting up a separate central Ministry for Overseas Indian Affairs, currently under Union Minister Vayalar Ravi.
   The Prime Minister, who inaugurated the Sixth Pravasi Bharati Divas in New Delhi, also announced the setting up of an India Development Foundation to canalise overseas voluntary and philanthropic efforts of non-resident Indians in development ventures at places of their origin in various parts of the country. An Overseas Workers Resource Centre to help Indian migrant workers abroad was also being established. Plans for a previously announced university for PIOs were also being firmed up.
   The Pravasi Bharati Samman was awarded at the concluding session of the two-day celebrations on 9 January by President Pratibha Patil. Mauritius Prime Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam, Indian-American astronaut Sunita Williams and Lord Bilimoria were among the recipients of the prestigious award.
   A cross-bench member of the British House of Lords and a strong believer in globalisation, Bilimoria is chairman of Indo-British Partnership and is an advocate of opening up of Indian accountancy, law and retail sectors. He was a leading member of two British delegations to India, one accompanying British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, in January.
   Bilimoria is founder chairman of Cobra Beer group, which has its roots in India and is expanding in Europe from its headquarters in Britain. The group has also established a sizeable presence in South Africa.
   Putting things in perspective, it has been noted that though overseas Indians are said to have one trillion dollar strength in terms of economic power their investments in India have been modest since 1947, though investment has been picking up recently. Inward fund flow from the richer Indians abroad has also been moderate compared with money sent home by poorer workers from the Gulf countries and elsewhere. Investment from overseas Indians last year, for instance, is estimated at about $50 billion, of which $26 billion came from five million workers from the Gulf countries.

top