"Pension and resettlement for NRIs & PIOs on the anvil"

Seven years ago, when the Indian government formed a ministry dedicated to the affairs of the persons of Indian origin living overseas, most imagined the ministry to remain in a niche and not really impact the lives of Indians, in India or outside. But as India gets ready to celebrate yet another PravasiBharatiya Divas -- the annual gathering where senior Indian government ministers and officials interact with leading Indians living overseas, it is clear that the MOIA as the ministry is known has definitely made its mark and now has become a ministry of reference. In an exclusive interview with India&You, Minister Vayalar Ravi outlines the key actions of his team in 2011 and look ahead at other challenges remaining for him.

One of the new initiatives that I proposed, which is now ready as a cabinet note and which I hope will be accepted soon, is pension and resettlement scheme. There are people who go and they have to come back, because there area few problems,now a days. So we have proposed this contributory and voluntary pension scheme where NRIs and PIOs can take a membership and contribute and then they will have access to a pension and resettlement funds. This is an idea, which would be implemented when it is approved. This is one major initiative for the PBD 2012. All the other things have been done,major demands of NRIs and PIOs have been met. Now, after the discussions at this PBD, we will see the outcome and what are the new expectations and demands of the diaspora and then according to that we will decide the next step.

2011 was one of the successful year and the major achievements which were made is the partnership with the north Indian statesand north eastern region. We could successfully make an impression on them, that they could get into the mainstream of international arena and we encourage the people living there to go abroad where employment opportunities exist and we are also helping them with skill development schemes in order to ensure that they can find the right jobs. So, in 2011, this was one big achievement for us, to give the people of North East India a very positive and strong message about their future.

I didn’t travel much this year, to confess. I also became minister of civil aviation and that took a lot of my time. But I feel that the downturn that happened in the Wall Street and the economic tsunami that has been following, there has been some impact in different European countries and America, but it has not really hurt the Indians living there.Indians are better placed, according to me. I don’t think from Europe or America many Indians have returned. But the employment opportunities for some IT experts may have been impacted, some of them might have come back, because they might have thought there is better opportunity here. Then there is also the question of outsourcing which might have had some impact on the Indian IT industry’s operations in the United States. There was not much impact of the economic slowdown on the Indian community in the Gulf. But there were other issues. For instance, there have been various democratic movements in many of those countries. This has had some impact on the Indian presence in the region, but very few, may be less than 100,000 people might have come back due to these disturbances. But we had to undertake some major evacuation operations in Libya where almost 18,000 people were evacuated within three days. So when we look at it from a distance, the disturbance in the Gulf countries may have had some kind of impact there. But at the same time there is another movement in the Gulf countries, which is something like the Swadeshi movement of India, where the local governments are keen to provide employment to their own citizens. This is of course their right and we can not do much here. But it will not impact the Indians living there a lot as I believe that having people of Indian community in millions in theGulf countriesis inevitable, for their own continuity, development and employment, it is inevitable, and they also realize that. Moreover, we have a very fine and cordial relation with the Gulf countries. They are our best friends. So naturally the Indian people will continue to play their role in the Gulf nations,I am not worried about any kind of backlash.

TYes Libya was a challenge. In fact, I was in touch with the Indian ambassador there even earlier as we had some problems of non-payment of salaries by some Indian companies, who duped them and they did not pay the salaries. So, in order to help the people who were blocked there, I allowed the Indian embassy to utilize the community development fund for the benefit of these people. I gave some money, so that she could send those people back to India first.After some time I got a message from some journalist from Dubai. He told me that there were some serious problem in Libya, he told me that there were some Indian nurses trapped in a hotel in Benghazi who could not leave the hotel as there was a lot of violence outside. He gave me a mobile number on which I called her. After two or three trials I got her on the line. She told me the hotel was closed and they were all locked up in the room. So, I spoke with them and I said I am the minister, you need not to worry. So, they were reassured, I told them I know what has happened and that they didn’t have to panic. They told me they wanted to go back home but could not leave the hotel as they could hear gunshots all around the hotel. I told them not to worry and to stay back, that I would ensure that they reached India safely. I could feel the panic. Immediately, I called the secretary to the prime minister and that night itself, thesecretary organized a meeting and the next day we decided to evacuate themimmediately. Thenbeing the minister of civil aviation it was easy for me to send directly a Boeing 747 of Air India. So immediately we started the evacuation and we brought back 7800 people. It was the big achievement of the ministry, in collaboration of the civil aviation. Fortunately, I am the minister for the both.

Ofcourse, great satisfaction and also we evacuated few from other countries also, mostly the African side. We are alert and we are always available and all of them know my mobile number. So they call and I have to pick it up because I know which country the call has come.

Yes,even at the mid night, of course.You had a trip to Guadeloupe this year. Would you like to talk about that?Guadeloupe is a beautiful place and I could see all those islands nearby, touching up to Trinidad & Tobago. They have all gone for the southern part of India mainly. And in Guadeloupe, I could see a memorial for one Chidambaram. He was the one who fought for the rights of the Indian community of Guadeloupe. He fought his battle and could win it after 18 years of fight. Unfortunately he is no more, but he should have been honoured earlier. But the people of Guadeloupe remember him still,I could see that. Unfortunately, I felt sorry that they have forgotten their mother tongue. I think only few people could talk either Tamil or Telugu language. But they speak very good French. I don’t know if the French deliberately did it so that the Indian immigrants are obliged to learn French. But for all these islands,after my visit, I have recommended that an officer of the Government of India should be sent to these islands to take care of the Indian community there as they are very cut off from India and even other parts of the world. It is part of the French State and I don’t know what kind of attention they are giving to these islands, but I wish they would look after the PIOs well.Can your ministry, or government of India can take some steps to reconnect them more with India, with languages and all. Yes, I agree that for Guadeloupe and few other islands, some reconnection must be there. One of the major stepsthat have been taken in this direction is to invite Mrs Kamala PersadBisesar, the Prime Minister of Trinidad & Tobago. It is aimed to improve this connectivity as these are all the Caribbean islands. That is what we have already done for the connectivity. I think after the visit and the PBD, the people of this island will receive our message to make their islands more connected with India and with people of Indian origin living around them. I will do my best to strengthen that. I will have to visit that area again.There is another French territory that is waiting for you for a long time that is the Reunion.Absolutely right, last time when I visited Mauritius I could not manage to go there. But this year, when I go to Mauritius, I will definitely visit the Reunion Island and from there I will go to South Africa. That is my idea But they have similar set of problems, they are more connected but in the sense of community, it’s much larger over there.I agree with you, the community is larger over there and they have not been taken care properly as they have expected. I have to do something for them. That is correct.

It has indeed reduced to a large extent now as far the Gulf countries are concerned, that practice has come down severely because now we are very strict. All our Proctectorate of Emigrants offices have been directed to be very vigilant to prevent this kind of malpractice and exploitation of Indian workers, so now all emigrants need a firm contract and everything else and the Indian embassies also over there are now motivated to intervene whenever an Indian worker comes with a complaint, and I am here then I will also send the message. So I think and I appreciate the Indian missions’ activities there, they are doing a good job, according to me. And this time this PBD we will have some message, the message is the connectivity of the Indians and the theme also we made it as Diaspora’s Inclusive Growth and the Diaspora Connectivity and we are organizing seminars and everything else accordingly. First day seminar will be on solar energy investment and then the water and third is the health and I am expecting the experts and the people engaged in this kind of activities to participate in the seminar on the first day. The second day is the inauguration by the Prime Minister then the plenary sessions are there. There is a session on youth connectivity, the gender issues are there in parallel sessions and then a very good session on diaspora. The diaspora ministers and others will address and the chief ministers’ conference will be organized where we will give opportunities to the delegates to interact with the chief ministers, generally and separately. This is the opportunity for them to understand the states and what they want. Then also the India Development Foundation, we are doing some activities on people to associate with it and help their villages. This all will make a good impact on the overseas Indians. The point is this, every year they cant’ come and talk. Don’t think that this is only a kind of mahotsav. This is a meaningful business. People understand each other. So that is what we all are doing and any suggestion, any kind of change, any kind of subject, delegates can suggest. I will accept any kind of subject I am able to take and we will it try next year. This is one of the major initiatives of the government of India, and the diaspora has to utilize this opportunity. They have already got the voting right, OCI cards and everything has come only from participation and exchange of ideas during the PBD. Now we have the proposal to allow overseas Indian doctors to start their practice in India. The parliament passed the bill. The overseas Indians with OCI cards can practice in India. The OCI cardis a document that makes you feel connected with India. It gives you certain rights, those rights include that you can invest in the properties and come and stay here any time and all that. But your first loyalty is to your own government and the country where they live. The voting rights, this is a major initiative that has been implemented and benefits millions of Indians who did not have the voting right once upon a time. Now they can all enroll their names. So, these are some of the major things we have done.

Yes, six years is over now.

I am the happiestman, because I believe I have done a lot for the overseas Indians especially I am very well versed with the Gulf employees. I was the home minister in Kerala, I received many letters from the Gulf Indians and there were many complaints. My neighbor is attacking my house, my property has been encroached, my wife and children cannot walk on the street freely. It was a law and order question. You know what I did? I called the DGP and the IGs and said I don’t want any kind of letters in future like this and I want them to feel the overseas Indians, those poor people working in the Gulf are our assets and we must protect them. So I told them I want a report in 48 hours about what action has beentaken. I made a proposal for making an Inspector General of Police in charge of overseas Indians and to make a Deputy Superintendent of Police in charge of the overseas Indians in every district and their duty is to inform me as soon as I send a complaint, forwarded to the DGP’s office and not to the secretary of my ministry and then he has to send me a report within 48 hours. It was like this that I could monitor and the follow up the police action taken on any kind of attack or any kind of irritation to the overseas Indians. That is how I could keep tabs on the diaspora problems. So some of our media friends in a national media wrote that Vayalar Ravi is the minister for overseas Keralites. I said yes, I am proud of my state. I am born and brought up there. So today you see very limited complaints are coming from the Gulf, or from the west or the America. I made them very happy because I am here to hear them.To hear them all.