>From Burkina Faso to Djibouti, Indians are everywhereKartikeya, TNN 9 October
>2009, 01:55am IST
MUMBAI: This may well be the ultimate ode to the globetrotting Indian who, for
centuries, has been criss-crossing the world in search of opportunity and
adventure — Indian citizens are today permanent residents of all but three
countries in the world.
The ministry of overseas Indian affairs has registered the presence of
Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) in 180 of 183 countries of the world. The numbers
may vary from just two in Lebanon to almost a million in the United States of
America but the fact is that Indians call the whole world their home. It is
only in North Korea, Pakistan and Bhutan that not a single NRI is to be found.
NRIs are Indians, who like steel tycoon Laxmi Mittal, proudly hold on to their
blue Indian passports while living in another country. They are also different
from ordinary Indian citizens who obtain visas and go abroad to work or study
for a limited period of time. NRIs remain citizens of India but enjoy the right
to live and work permanently in another country of their choice.
Indians can now be found in the remotest corners of the Earth. Go to the
Republic of Palau, a speck of an island nation in the Pacific Ocean which is
one of the world's youngest sovereign states, and you will find five NRIs
there. And don't be surprised to find 20 of them living in the mountains of
Bolivia or a 375-strong Indian community living in tiny Djibouti on the Horn of
Africa.
Historically, Indian communities have had a major presence in several parts of
the world. Be it Gujarati merchants who settled in East Africa, Tamil Chettiars
who lived in south-east Asia or indentured labourers taken from Bihar to work
on plantations in the West Indies, Indians have been migrating to other
countries for centuries. During the two World Wars, they fought for the British
army and settled down in the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada. The
NRIs were a post-independence addition to this long list of migrants.
But it is also true that, historically, the NRI's favoured destinations have
been First World countries or West Asia, where employment opportunities abound.
But the latest data confirm that in a globalized world, NRIs are making
opportunities in literally every corner of the Earth.
The largest number of NRIs are in Saudi Arabia (17 lakh) followed by the United
Arab Emirates (14 lakh) and the US (9 lakh) but what is more fascinating is
they can also be found — albeit in minuscule numbers — in Slovenia (10),
Montserrat (10), Iceland (21), Bosnia and Herzegovina (30) and Burkina Faso
(150).
Experts also point out that, if People of Indian Origin (PIOs) — a term for
citizens of other countries who have an Indian ancestry — are included, then
both Pakistan and Bhutan would also find it difficult to shake off the Indian
links to their populations.
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