BY MAHAK DAGAR
On 2nd December, the 79th Know India Programme (KIP) team had the distinguished opportunity to interact with the External Affairs Minister of India Dr S Jai Shankar.
The group shared their experiences with the EAM and put forth their reflections and queries to the Honourable Minister.
A key question that was on the mind of many was what the diaspora meant to the Indian government. There is no doubt that the effort put forth by the Indian government in connecting its diaspora to their roots through various programmes is unique.
EAM Jaishankar acknowledged the adjustment the diaspora has made in their respective countries whilst keeping their culture alive.
He went on to say, “One part of it is that the diaspora deserve it; the diaspora has kept those connections alive and for people in India it is like if they are making that effort so far away to do all of this I mean surely it must it kind of is emotionally and morally incumbent on me to respect it.”
He underlined that unlike in western societies whereby the connection between the diaspora wanes after a few generations due to their definitions of nationality, the opposite is true of India where there is a conscious effort to connect and look out for those in other countries.
He also acknowledged that while those present in the room held passports to different countries, what mattered was the historical and cultural connection they had to India.
“The diaspora really matters to us, and we hope for the diaspora we really matter to you,” the EAM concluded, leaving the 79th KIP team with his best wishes on the remainder of their tour.
The 79th KIP team embarked on a three-week tour of India on 25th November, visiting key institutions and heritage sites in Delhi, Agra, Mumbai and Odisha.
At the time of going to print, the team concluded the first part of their Delhi visit, as well as Agra and Mumbai.
Aside from visiting the Taj Mahal and Red Fort in Agra, the group of 27 journalists visited a marble inlay workshop as well as the One District One Product (ODOP) facility.
The ODOP facility in Agra focuses on the promotion of leather goods, training primarily women from the area in the craft and providing them with the necessary tools to forge a path to financial independence.
In Mumbai the team visited Gateway of India, Film City, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) amongst various other key sites.