Modi’s Houston Address - Significance of Indian Diaspora
iasparliament
September 21, 2019
What is the issue?
Indian Prime Minster and U.S. President Trump are to address the Indian American community in Houston, U.S.
Here is a look at what it means to India’s diaspora diplomacy.
How did the Indian diaspora evolve?
There was significant Indian migration (both labour and capital) during the 19th century.
With this, the diaspora became an important part of the emergence of India as a nation in the first half of the 20th century.
But, there was fear in many newly independent nations that the Indians might become a potential fifth column (a group within a country at war who are sympathetic to or working for its enemies).
There was also widespread resentment in some parts of Afro-Asia against the privileged economic positions that Indians held in the colonial era.
How significant has it become?
The Indian diaspora (including non-resident Indians and persons of Indian origin) is estimated to be more than 30 million and is growing.
Its substantive concentration is in the Anglo-American world, the Gulf and the former colonies of the British empire.
Increasingly, its presence is growing beyond these traditional areas.
The political and economic influence of the diaspora is also increasing in the host nations.
U.S. - Nowhere is the presence of the Indian diaspora more expansive than in the US.
As a rich and accomplished minority, the Indian-American community has become influential in all walks of life in the US.
Within the US, Texas, California, New York and Illinois are among the states that host large Indian-American communities.
Houston is among the top 10 American cities hosting the Indian-American community.
How has Delhi’s approach to diaspora evolved?
Delhi consciously distanced itself from the diasporic communities in the 1950s and 1960s due to nationalist backlash against the Indian communities in Africa and Asia.
As India turned inwards, it did not pay attention to the “brain drain” happening; many well-trained Indians began to look for opportunities elsewhere.
It was only in the late 1980s that Delhi began to rethink its approach to the diaspora.
PM Rajiv Gandhi was the first to appreciate the potential role diaspora could play in advancing national development and improving India’s ties with the US.
As he launched the reform era, P V Narasimha Rao sought investments from the diaspora.
Further, Atal Bihari Vajpayee formalised India’s engagement with the diaspora by institutionalising the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas.
How significant is the Houston gathering?
The political role of the diaspora has been valuable for Delhi in the US.
E.g. in the last decade, the diaspora has generated the much needed political support in the US Congress for changing the American non-proliferation laws and facilitating civil nuclear cooperation with India
For Modi, the Houston engagement is a continuation of his political investment in engaging the Indian diaspora.
It is based on the recognition that a large and successful diaspora has widened India’s footprint and can contribute to domestic and international goals.
Modi went beyond demanding that the diaspora do more for India. He promised that India would do more for them as well.
India’s diaspora engagement in America could also help elevate the strategic partnership with the US to a higher level.
