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With over 200 delegates from 20 countries in attendance, the two-day biennial convention of Global Organization of People of Indian Origin in New York last week served as an international forum where some of the Diaspora’s longstanding demands like voting rights and nomination of a few of them as Rajya Sabha members were heard loud and clear.
Throughout the June24-25 convention at the Marriott LaGuardia Hotel there were small knots of people in almost every nook, talking among themselves how best to get their concerns and issues noted by the Indian government. They also discussed how best the Diaspora could contribute to the development of their motherland both in terms of financial and technological investments.
People like Guyana Prime Minister Moses V. Nagamootoo, who was the chief guest at the event, offered a way. He told potential contributors that they could consider his country as an investment destination and spoke about many incentives that Guyana could offer them.
India’s Consul General in New York Riva Ganguly Das in her inaugural address noted the role played by GOPIO in launching and building a worldwide movement as a united force for the Indian Diaspora. The convention was inaugurated at the World’s Fair Marina June 24.
A measure of the number of issues and the seriousness that was attached to them was the number of sessions on the second day of the convention. The organizers said there were 9 sessions to deliberate on the global Indian Diaspora; evaluate GOPIO’s progress in 27 years besides sessions on networking, exchanging ideas, and connecting with PIO/NRI delegates from around the world.
The NRIs urge to give back to their motherland found expression in one of the resolutions passed at the conference. It noted that many NRIs want to support their alma maters, set up schools and colleges in their villages and towns, and support social and environmental causes. “However, they face major hurdles. The clearance process through the Home Ministry is very time consuming and needs to be streamlined and made more efficient,” the resolution demanded.
On that point of giving back Dr. Sudhir Parikh, publisher of Desi Talk and Padma Shri award winner, noted how important it was to give back. In an address before the gathering, Parikh showed a page from his life to buttress his point that how success and giving back are intertwined.
“The key to a success is kindness – giving and receiving — because it will lead to all kinds of good and great things. Giving and sharing are the building blocks of next success. Well, I knew about it even without going to business school …. People forget that sharing is also a part growing. When you reach a stage of your life when you can afford to share and give back, it opens up new vistas even at this age,” Parikh said.
The conference, organized by Thomas Abraham, chairman, conference committee and founder president, GOPIO International, consisted of an inaugural plenary session with keynote speaker Raj Jaswa, former president of TiE Silicon Valley and director and trustee of TiE International. This was followed by two-track conference sessions – business and technology ventures and opportunities, and social, political, gender and health challenges.
The conference passed as many as ten resolutions after deliberations.
The resolutions will be sent to the Indian government for positive action.
One of the resolutions noted that NRIs are an important factor in promoting India’s interest, in shaping relations between the “home” and the “host” countries and in helping steer a dynamic shift in India’s economic and political advantage in world affairs.
“However, 10 million NRIs who are citizens of India, have no representation in the decision making process of the country of their citizenship. We urge the government of India to nominate a few prominent NRIs as members of the Rajya Sabha) so as to reinforce and further integrate the bonds between India and the overseas Indian community,” it said.
Other resolutions demanded protection of real estate and business investments as well as inherited assets as well as abolition of the practice of taxing of NRIs/PIOs’ social security benefits in India.
It noted that many NRIs/PIOs are moving back to India to be closer to their families, but once they settle back in India, their social security benefits, which are generally tax free in the developed countries, are taxed according to the Indian tax rules.
“We strongly feel that those who are getting their social security benefits from outside India should receive tax parity similar to Indian retirees and request the Finance Ministry to change the rules. Of course, such person’s Indian income must be taxed as per the rules,” the resolution said.
GOPIO’s 27th anniversary celebrations concluded with a grand finale banquet and recognition of businesses and entrepreneurs with social responsibility at the World’s Fair Marina. The honorees were Lord Diljit Rana of Belfast (Northern Ireland, U.K.), Raj Jaswa of Silicon Valley and TV Asia Chairman H.R. Shah.
Dr. Sudhir Parikh, chairman of Parikh Worldwide Media, and Indrajit Singh Saluja, edior and publisher of The Indian Panorama, were honored with media awards for their contribution and support of the community.
The Chief Guest at the banquet and reception was former West Indian cricketer Vivian Alexander Richards popularly known as Viv Richards.
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