Amidst much rhetoric on Indo-Pak relations in the past week, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee made an announcement that has enormous impact on the lives of the estimated 20 million Non Resident Indians (NRIs). At a function at Vigyan Bhavan on January 8, Vajpayee accepted a report of the High Level Committee (HLC) on the Indian Diaspora, and declared that the issue of dual citizenship was "resolved". The use of that word is significant. It indicates that a way has been worked out so that dual citizenship can be offered to the Indian settled abroad without having to amend the Constitution-a supposed hurdle for many years now. Now it is only the amendment of the relevant sections of the Citizenship Act of 1955 that stands between the global Indian and his Indian passport.

Uk Special

REASONS TO CHEER » The recommendations of the High Level Committee on the Indian Diaspora envisage benefits for both NRIs and the country of their origin: » A new organisation to address the needs of Non Resident Indians (NRIs) and PIOs and to "ensure their engagement" in India. The autonomous, empowered body, set up on the lines of the Planning Commission, will be housed in a proposed Pravasi Bharatiya Bhavan. » Appointment of a minister-level officer in Indian missions in countries with a sizeable diaspora. » A Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Indian diaspora. » The setting up of special economic zones in India exclusively for projects to be set up by NRIs/PIOs and a single window mechanism to provide consultancy services for overseas Indian investors. » Fast track clearances for philanthropic activities and economic investments. » Greater protection to NRI banking accounts, quicker resolution of disputes concerning property and fraudulent transactions. » Greater cooperation between PIOs and resident Indians in the various professions, especially scientists. » Measures to address problems of overseas blue-collar workers, including a welfare fund for repatriated workers in distress.

For the millions of Indians scattered across the world, India has always exerted a strong pull. Skilled professionals and businessmen migrated to better developed countries to make their fortunes and ensure the future of their children. They constitute less than two per cent of the Indian population, but amassed wealth equal to twice the GDP of India. Yet living away from the country had created an alienation they desperately wanted to avoid. The mistrust caused by the brain drain of the 1960s, the distortion of the title NRI from Non Resident Indian to Not Required Indian, the envy, hostility or outright extortion they faced when they visited their homeland-all these and more pulled the overseas community together for a single demand: dual citizenship. That seemed like a means to ensure they would no longer be seen as aliens back home.

Besides creating a feeling of belonging, dual citizenship would allow Indians settled abroad to contribute to the progress of the country and to visit more often without having to line up for visas. It would also allow them to inherit property, invest in the market and promote social development through the philanthropic activities of Indians living abroad.

In New York, Bhishma Agnihotri, India's ambassador at large, welcomed the move. "NRIs should have a feeling of involvement with the country. A feeling of participation ... The latest move will make them an emotional part of the country. It is a step forward. There is a bridge now, which means traffic can move both ways. Eighty per cent of Chinese contribution is because of the Chinese living abroad. That would be an objective target for NRIs to move towards."

Many NRIs, such as London-based Matthew Panikar of Reliance Industries, feel dual citizenship is long overdue. "In many ways, it will be of great benefit to NRIs. A permanent resident card does not meet all the requirements of an overseas Indian. For instance, if a person is an European Union or US passport holder, then even if he inherits land of his forefather in India, he cannot own that land because owning is not permitted under a permanent resident card."

For Indians abroad, buying shares, property or even investing in India is very difficult, says Panikar. He has no illusions that things will change overnight-it would still take some time for India to accept and exchange intellectual and scientific ideas with NRIs, he believes. "There will be some problems but we will have to cope with them."

The issue of dual citizenship was raised over a decade ago, soon after the launch of India's economic reforms programme. Then prime minister P.V. Narasimha Rao-in a bid to woo investments from the community whose funds at that time formed the bulk of India's forex reserves-had promised a gathering of Indian Americans in New York, that the government would seriously consider offering them dual citizenship. It was felt that the granting of dual citizenship would create considerable goodwill among People of Indian Origin (PIOs) and would facilitate investment, trade, tourism, voluntary work and philanthropic contributions to India. Governments came and went, but the community that wielded so much economic clout all over the world found dual citizenship wasn't coming-the non-resident Indian (NRI) had no voice in India because he did not constitute a vote bank.

But the BJP's pragmatic approach after it swept into power in 1997 gave the diaspora new hope. One of the party's election commitments was that it would set up a committee on the Indian diaspora to study the needs and expectations of Indians living abroad. Recognising that the diaspora holds a willing pool of funds that could eventually be tapped for the country's development, and this could not be ignored, the government constituted the HLC in September 2000 under the chairmanship of MP L.M. Singhvi, former high commissioner to the UK, who has spent years dealing with the Indian diaspora.

The report of the HLC is now with the Home Ministry for consideration. Says an official at the Ministry of External Affairs, "We cannot say whether or when the recommendations will be okayed." "There are other aspects of the issue of dual citizenship-"the main issue"- that have been resolved, says Singhvi. One of them is that dual nationality would be available only to citizens of countries that already provide it. The US, Canada, UK and some other European countries, Australia, New Zealand and Singapore have been identified. Another key issue is the resumption of nationality. "We have drafted a legislation that will allow those who were forced to give up their Indian passport to resume their Indian nationality," says Singhvi.

The obvious security concerns preclude automatic conferment of dual citizenship -something the HLC has paid special attention to while drafting its recommendations. "Dual citizenship does not mean dual allegience," says Singhvi. "It will be permitted only for members of the Indian diaspora who satisfy the conditions and criteria laid down in the legislation to be enacted to amend the relevant sections of the Citizenship Act, 1955." It is a concern voiced by the Prime Minister when he said, "We are in favour of dual citizenship, but not dual loyalty."

Dual nationality will not allow voting rights or the right to contest elections
to elected bodies in India. Moreover, for security reasons, a dual national may not be inducted into the administrative, defence or paramilitary services, except by a special order of the Central government. The HLC, however, stresses on transparency in the rules and their enforcement.

Through its 15-month long travel around the world and study of the diaspora, the HLC noted the concerns faced by the community and produced separate country profiles that are part of the main report submitted last week to the prime minister.

"We have created a databank on the diaspora, which is less than two per cent of the population of Inida, but which has a GDP greater than that of India," says Singhvi. "The diaspora is a cluster of diversities-not an undifferentiated mass. It is different country to country, and we are creating a wider awareness of the other Indian."

Lord Bhiku Patel, Member of the House of Lords and Professor at the London School of Economics, got a privileged preview of the report and was all praise for it. "The report will increase the general level of consiousness in India about its overseas connections going back several centuries. The report shows 119 countries where our people are found to represent our karma bhumi just as much as India."