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NATIONAL NRI POLICY NEEDED
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 I
feel that Dr. L. M. Singhvi, the moving spirit behind the
observation of the 'Day of the NRIs or the 'Pravasi Bharatiya
Divas' in Delhi, and the subsequent NRI conclave with almost
1,500 NRIs from 40 countries taking part in it, deserves all
the bouquets, all the good luck and all the caution at the
same time. I have reasons for the triple sentiment. No one
from among the various political parties can doubt Dr. Singhvi's sincerity and honesty in what some have called the
consolidation of the '26th State of India' or the 20 million
people of Indian origin living all over the world as
non-resident Indians. If the act could be accomplished without
the bureaucrat, the petty politician and the communal
adventurer sabotaging it, that would be a great thing.
The potential
of the NRI to participate in what the President of India A. P.
J. Kalam has called "A second revolution" is immense. One has
to take account of the fact that the 20 million Indians abroad
have more than twice the assets and income than a
fast-progressing and fast-earning State like Malaysia. But it
has also to be noted, with some sadness, that 65 per cent of
the foreign investment in the People's Republic of China comes
from the Chinese diaspora, that is, the non-resident Chinese
in many countries. In contrast, the Indian diaspora, with much
bigger and multifaceted resources in terms of money,
technology and expertise, contributes only 10 per cent of
investment to their motherland. Not that they do not want to,
as India's current ambassador-at-large, Bhishma Agnihotri and
some of his leading NRI colleagues from the United States of
America have hinted.
The biggest
hurdle is red-tape and non-communication. The NRIs keen to
invest in India are sent from pillar to post by clerks and
bureaucrats, and if and when their proposals are through,
nobody cares to even inform them about them. It puts off the
patriotic and enthusiastic NRI. The NRI representatives agreed
with the proposal mooted originally by Dr. Singhvi that there
should be a single window and a single national NRI policy to
consolidate the diaspora. Let it be a permanent national
policy. |
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Sunil Dang
Editor-in-Chief |
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