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Mahesh

10/01/25 09:51 AM IST

Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas

In News
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 18th edition of the Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas in Bhubaneswar.
Overseas Indian
  • Overseas Indians are classified into three categories: Non-Resident Indians, Overseas Citizens of India and Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs).
  • NRIs are Indians who are residents of foreign countries.
  • A person of Indian origin who is a foreign national and gets registered as an Overseas Citizen of India cardholder under Section 7A of the Citizenship Act, 1955 is an OCI.
  • The person must be eligible to be a citizen of India on January 26, 1950, or was a citizen of India on or at any time after January 26, 1950, or belonged to a territory that became part of India after August 15, 1947.
  • Minor children of such individuals, except those who were citizens of Pakistan or Bangladesh, were also eligible for OCI cards.
Pravasi Bharatiya diwas
  • A High-Level Committee on Indian Diaspora, headed by jurist and Parliamentarian LM Singhvi, recommended in January 2002 that the government must renew and strengthen linkages of overseas Indians to their place of origin, and with each other.
  • The committee recommended that a Pravasi Bharatiya Bhavan should be set up to emerge as the focal point for networking between India and its overseas Indian community; and as a suitable place to commemorate the stories of the Indian Diaspora. It was later setup in New Delhi.
  • The idea of a day dedicated to recognising overseas Indians thus emerged and was first held in 2003.
  • January 9 was selected as it was the date when Mahatma Gandhi returned to India from South Africa in 1915.
  • Over the years, he has often been described as the first non-resident Indian of the most famous NRI by various politicians, including PM Modi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
  • Since 2015, the centenary year of Gandhi’s return, the format was revised for the meeting to be held once every two years.
The Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award
  • An award called The Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award is given out as part of the programme.
  • It is the highest honour conferred on a Non-Resident Indian, Person of Indian Origin; or an organisation or institution established and run by them.
  • The award is to commemorate the contribution of the Indian diaspora to create a better understanding of India abroad, support India’s causes and work for the welfare of the local Indian community.
  • A jury-cum-awards committee, with (the) Vice President as the chairman and External Affairs Minister as the vice-chair and other distinguished members from various walks of life considered the nominations… and unanimously selected the awardees.
Indian Diaspora
  • According to data from the MEA from late 2024, the United States of America has 54 lakh Overseas Indians, the number for the United Arab Emirates stands at 35 lakh, Canada at 28 lakh and Saudi Arabia at 24 lakh.
  • This population sends a large sum of money back home. In 2023, it amounted to around $125 billion.
  • In countries such as the US and Canada, members of the Indian diaspora are increasingly visible in politics.
Source- Indian Express

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