By NNN-Bernama
New Delhi : India announced that Malaysia or Singapore could host the next mini Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD), or the Indian Diaspora Conference, to enable more people of Indian origin to participate in the annual event.
The idea to host a mini conference was mooted to ensure that more Indians living outside India, such as in Asia and the Caribbean, would have an opportunity to participate in the conference, but on a smaller scale, while the main annual conclave of the Indian diaspora, which is usually held in January, would continue as scheduled.
“We want more Indians to participate in the Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas so we have decided to host the mini conference. We have received several requests from Malaysia and Singapore to host this event,” India’ Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi said.
He was speaking to reporters after signing a memorandum of understanding between the ministry and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) to promote the Know India Programme.
He said the ministry would organise the first mini PBD, planned for Sept 23 this year, in New York to allow Indians in North and South America to participate.
Overseas Indians number about 25 million and are spread over 130 countries and Malaysia is home to the largest Indian population outside India with about 1.8 million people.
In 2005, a whopping RM80 billion (US$23 billion) in remittance and investments from overseas Indians flowed into the Indian economy — a major financial injection at a time when India is hungry for foreign direct investments to further propel its robust economy.
The ministry and CII are jointly organising the Know India Programme to expose overseas Indian youths to Indian culture, heritage, history and economic development.
The two- to three-week comprehensive programme will coincide with the PBD held in January.