The Hindu Business Line : Pravasi Divas in Hyderabad from January 7

THE fourth Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) would be held in Hyderabad from January 7-9 next year. The annual conference is being organised by the Union Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs in partnership with Andhra Pradesh Government and the FICCI.

Speaking to newspersons on Wednesday, the Union Minister of State in Prime Minister's Office (PMO), Mr Pruthviraj Chowhan, said that the Prime Minister would inaugurate PBD-2006 at the International Convention Centre Hyderabad (ICCH), adjacent to HITEX Exhibition Centre.

According to him, the highlight of the event would be the interactive sessions for overseas Indians with select State Governments on investment opportunities.

Various sessions at PBD-2006 would provide a platform for connecting aspirations of the overseas Indian community as a partner in India's socio-economic development, he added.

The Minister also said that the Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) scheme announced by the Prime Minister at the PBD-2005 is ready to roll out from mid-November and would constitute a concrete realisation of the Government's commitment to honour a long-expressed sentiment of the overseas Indian community.

An estimated 25 million overseas Indians with phenomenal diversity are spread over 110 countries across the globe and acknowledged for their knowledge, skills, and resources the world over.

"PBD-2006 will act as the ideal forum for focusing attention on issues and areas of mutual benefit of India and the diaspora in a symbiotic relationship of leveraging resources and capabilities for far-reaching transformation of the Indian society."

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