Inaugurating the 9th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas here on Saturday, the Prime Minister said : “The richness of India’s classical traditions and the colour and vibrancy of contemporary Indian culture are making waves around the world. The Government of India has decided to establish new Indian cultural centres in US, Canada, Saudi Arabia, France and Australia. I urge the Indian communities in these countries to support and patronise these centres so that they become effective instruments for projecting the diversity and splendour of composite Indian culture.”

Dr Singh also inaugurated the Pravasi Bharatiya Kendra which would become a focul point for interaction, exchange, facilitation and advocacy for the non-resident Indian (NRI) community.

India is negotiating a generic arrangement with the European Union with a view to improve the conditions of migrating Indians. Social Security Agreements have been signed with 12 countries which have a arge presence of India while Labour Mobility Partnerships have been signed with two countries. The Facility of the Indian Community Welfare Fund has been extended to all Indian missions abroad.

The Prime Minister informed that the both the Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card and the People of Indian Origin (PIO) card will be merged into a single facility. Both OIC and PIO cards are intended to facilitate visa-free travel to India as well as to provide the rights of residency and participation in business and educational activities in the country. More than 700,000 OCI cards have been issued so far. Last year alone 20,000 OCI cards were issued.

“Since last year, we have enacted a law which has accorded Non-Resident citizens the right to register themselves in the electoral rolls of their constituencies. Our government is framing appropriate procedures to give effect to this new legal provision which will give NRIs their legitimate right to participate in the country’s electoral processes. I have no doubt that their participation will be welcomed by the constituencies in which you do participate. They will bring a breath of global fresh air to our politics, I sincerely hope” he said.

The Prime Minister also informed that serious thought was been given to make systemic changes that ensure more transparent procedures and safeguards in the governance process through consensus.

The Union Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs is planning to initiate a ‘skills initiative’ for overseas employment of people from the north-eastern region of the country. Towards this end, an Institute of Excellence will be identified to promote technical skills in the region in the areas of hospitality and healthcare.

Yesterday the second meeting of the Prime Minister’s Global Advisory Council of Overseas Indians suggested to establish structured engagement with young overseas Indians, promoting open architecture for collaboration in higher education, flexible higher education system, greater interface between Government R&D laboratories and university system for technological development and innovation, global outreach of India’s soft power, technology based mechanism for facilitating philanthropy work, welfare of migrant workers, greater outreach and use of alumni networks abroad.