The Hindu Business Line : Diaspora's day out

The tsunami did overshadow the proceedings... but it also deepened the sense of belonging. The recent conclave of NRIs threw up several interesting postures on patriotism, nationalism and globalisation.

As he stands in line to ask his question, 18-year-old Rikin Tank seems an unlikely participant in a session on healthcare. He does not get cowed-down by silver-haired men who try to move ahead of him in the queue. "I said I will stand and ask my question," says Tank, a pre-medical student from California. "I have been watching the tragedy after the tsunami hit India. There are so many non-governmental organisations, people, resources, money... but no coordination," says the lanky lad, as he makes his point.

Tank is not the only overseas Indian who has the tsunami and its victims on his mind. In fact, the three-day Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) or the conclave of non-resident Indians (NRI) got off on a low key as it followed close on the heels of the tsunami tragedy. After the killer-wave hit the coasts of several nations on a fateful Sunday in December — the PBD got shorn of all entertainment and glamour, to be provided by Bollywood, as a mark of respect to the victims.

"My father is a paediatrician and he is here conducting a medical camp in Gujarat with 25 other doctors," says Tank. So, why has Tank come all the way to participate in a function that has been variously described as a place to network, breast-beat on patriotism or find a suitable desi match?

"I am here to strike at the root of the problem, to ask the Government how we can collaborate better," he says, rather ambitiously. "Infrastructure in healthcare is minimal. We have the potential. It is only a matter of sparking it off," he adds. All very well, but will he come back to India to follow up on his idealism?

"Yes. After my medical school, I do plan to come here and start a hospital," he says.

Informed and involved

And that is precisely the kind of involvement that Dr Jagan M. Ailinani, President of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin, has back home in Andhra Pradesh. A radiologist by specialisation, he has adopted a village, Motha, in his home State. Originally from Hyderabad, the doctor seeks to protect Indian interests abroad, especially in his field. But, he says, it is a two-way street, where he also enthuses people to adopt a village or a social project in India.

"There are 2,000-odd people at the adopted village and we are educating about 300-400 children," he says. His organisation donated Rs 25 lakh to Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh towards the tsunami relief fund and wants to involve itself more in the rehabilitation process. Organisations like his get involved disaster strikes. "We work on relief and emergency medicine, in providing training to people and we have even started an emergency number in Pune, equivalent to the 911 in the US," he adds. Their desire to help and the urgency to act are palpable at the dedicated sessions of the NRI gathering.

Not surprising then, that Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram urged the gathering to invest in social infrastructure for the benefit of the `other India'.

The Gujju numbers

Meanwhile, reaching out to the ever-expanding base of non-resident Gujaratis (NRG), Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi quipped: "If every Gujarati outside India `pushed' about four foreigners and their families to visit the State, tourism would grow rapidly!" The laughs and applause notwithstanding, he said that Gujarat had been wooing NRIs and NRGs to invest in the State for about five years now, compared to the Centre that set up a dedicated ministry for the purpose about two months ago.

Not surprising that the largest gathering of NRIs was at a session dedicated to Gujarat, as compared to Maharashtra or Kerala. Of course, Uttar Pradesh had a towering advantage — Amitabh Bachchan, who drew in the crowds, non-resident and otherwise, as the brand ambassador for that State.

No doubt, the NRI conclave is becoming a magnet for overseas Indians from the US, the UK, West Asia and even smaller nations such as Trinidad and Tobago. About 400 people had to be turned back, as there was not enough accommodation, Chidambaram informed the audience.

"In fact, even I have to share my room with an NRI," Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs Jagdish Tytler told another gathering. So what draws the NRI crowd to such a gathering?

"Oh, I came with no expectations," says Sashi Nagdene of the United Arab Emirates. "It was well organised and we had a great time," she adds. Her husband joins the conversation and shows us a photograph they took with a Mahatma Gandhi look-alike at the venue. "Something like this can happen only in India," he says, sporting a huge smile.

`We are like this... '

But some other delegates were not so lucky, getting locked out of the venue, a good 15 minutes before the concluding session to be addressed by President Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam began. And as organisers, the police and other security officials pointed fingers at each other, a disgruntled NRI said: "This is precisely the bureaucracy that one encounters in India." Another angry participant shouted, "Seems like we are not wanted here anymore," as he pulled at the locked doors, invitation in hand.

After some heated moments, the crowd was allowed inside. But they had to sit outside the main hall and watch the grand finale on television! One NRI sportingly took to the floor in front of the television and quipped, "this is quite literally a red-carpet reception." Inside, officials on the dais spoke of replacing the red-tape with the red carpet!

Resplendent in a crisp silk sari, a mother of two was, however, unperturbed by the confusion. A resident of the UK, her grandfather had moved to Africa several years ago. "But we have our roots here. At the end of the day, India is ours too and that is why I come here with my children," she says. It is difficult to balance the cultures, she says, adding, "the children find it difficult here, especially the hygiene and cleanliness."

"But India has come a long way," adds Manjula Darji from New Zealand. Also a mother of two, she is happy that the Government has extended its dual citizenship to more nations. "It is long overdue," she points out. Her husband, Ashokbhai Gaiwala Darji, president of The New Zealand Indian Central Association Inc, agrees and adds that the procedures should be made more user-friendly. Manjula's grandfather had left India 50 years ago, but she comes back with her family so the children can keep in touch with their culture and roots.

Spirited and enabled

But are mere interactive sessions with Government officials at the PBD indicative of a change in mindset? Or, as Dr Raghuram Rajan, Economic Counsellor and Director of Research with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), asks: Does India have the mindset to play in an integrated economy? Yes, the people are less tolerant of laziness, there is a spirit that asks "why not" instead of "why", there is a generation that is willing to sacrifice for a better future for its children, he observes, adding that the India economy is still not open to foreign goods, services and labour.

On the IMF's trade restrictiveness index, India scores a high 8, he points out. But, he adds, as the population gets younger, educated and more skilled, the country will be more tolerant to competition.

Only, the regulatory environment needs to be more enabling; a social security net must be put in place, as India modernises; access to education; and development must spread to rural areas, he points out. The stars are well aligned for India to become a hub for globalisation, he concludes.

And as the ladies dressed in their kanjeevarams and men in their formal best flock with enthusiasm to the venue that is just a dash away from the picturesque sea, one is tempted to ask: is the PBD just a venue to network?

As participants bask in the wintry sun, partake in the local cuisine laid out from different States and indulge themselves by talking in their respective mother-tongues, one wonders: is it all about jingoistic patriotism?

As people queue up in all earnestness to pop difficult questions to government officials on the panel, one ponders: is there a real desire to get involved with the country that many of them (or their fore-fathers) had chosen to leave?

Young Tank responds: "There are dreams and this is where the dreams will be built." But for someone observing from the ringside, "all of the above" would be a safe answer to what brings overseas Indians flocking home.

Picture by Paul Noronha

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