The Deputy Prime
Minister, Shri L.K. Advani today called upon the Pravasi Bharatiya
community to continue to excel in whatever field they are working
and in whatever position they are. The more they accomplish, the
greater will be their service to India. Addressing the Pravasi
Bharatiya Conference in the capital on its 2nd day,
Shri Advani said that he is convinced that more captivating than
the past and present success stories of Pravasi Bharatiyas will
be the greater heights that they are poised to soar to in the
future. It will be for the benefit of theirs, the host countries
and our common motherland. He proudly recalled how President Nelson
Mandela himself was inspired by another illustrious Pravasi Bharatiya
– Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of the Nation. The Home Minister
said whenever he has seen or heard success stories scripted by
Indians abroad, he asked himself how we can create a situation
in India that will enable Indians living here to create similar
success stories. He said Prime Minister, Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee
has already assured that we are moving ahead with single minded
determination in this direction. The Pravashi Bhartiyas can contribute
to this effort in hundred different ways – through investment
of your intellectual and financial resources, through philanthropy,
through effectively projecting the positive image of India, through
countering of the anti-India propaganda of our adversaries.
The Deputy Prime
Minister proudly announced that India has a vision for the 21st
century. He said the 20th Century was the century of
the West – especially of Britain and America. Experts predict
that the 21st Century will be a century of the East.
It should be our endeavour to make it an Indian Century. He asked
what does this vision mean for Pravasi Bharatiyas and would be
Pravasi Bharatiyas. Elaborating a littler further Shri Advani
said that all of us know that India’s past was glorious. India
was a land of plenty and progress with a highly advanced culture,
enjoying a prestige that had spread far and wide. Unfortunately,
our Motherland came to be at the receiving end of the history
in the last millennium. It is only with the attainment of Independence
from colonial rule in 1947 that India could start a new journey,
free to write her own destiny.
He said many of our
forefathers left Indian shores either out of compulsion or want.
They were taken to far-off lands to work as labourers and some
of them even in modern times went out in search of greener pastures
and better opportunities. But this first Bharatiya Conference
be made an occasion for all of us to pledge that never again in
future shall Indians leave India out of compulsion. Shri Advani
said he sees a future in which the Pravasi Bharatiyas will be
proud that their Motherland has become a Developed Nation, capable
of guiding the course of the 21st Century. He also
visualizes a future in which Indians will be proud that their
Pravasi counterparts everywhere are recognized as the most advanced
sections of their respective societies contributing to the all
round progress of the host countries and to the glory of Bharat
Vansh.
Shri Advani said
Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore had decided to establish a university
and he coined a phrase for this – VISHWA BHARATI. He thinks that
this is the phrase that best describes the Pravasi Bharatiya community.
For them are the Bharat in the Vishwa and they represent Bharat
to the Vishwa. Hailing the role of NRIs in projecting India’s
image abroad Shri Advani said they had played a decisive role
in changing the perception of the US Government and American society
towards India. Talking about the Government’s decision to grant
dual citizenship to the persons of Indian origin of certain countries,
he said one of the primary factors that guided the decision was
that the host country should also have a law granting dual citizenship
and national security was another factor which was weighed before
taking such a decision. He assured them that the Government of
India is taking a number of steps for simplification of procedures
to attract PIO investments. He said special attention is also
being given to the problems of overseas Indians blue-collar workers.
