Tabe

Over 3,000 delegates from 70 countries have arrived in Odisha ahead of the 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD), which will get under way here on Wednesday.

Overview
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The three-day event, based on the theme “Diaspora’s contribution to a Viksit Bharat”, will be formally inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the second day of the convention. The previous edition was held in Indore in January 2023, in partnership with the Madhya Pradesh government.

“Christine Carla Kangaloo, President of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, will be the chief guest of the 18th PBD, and she would be virtually addressing the convention. Dr. Dev Pragad, CEO and co-owner of Newsweek, will be the guest of honour at the Youth PBD on January 8,” Arun Kumar Chatterjee, Secretary (Consular Passport, Visa, and Overseas Indian Affairs) said at a press conference here.

“We will have ministerial-level delegations from Mauritius, Malaysia and South Africa. There will be big delegation of diaspora from several other countries, including from Malaysia, Mauritius, Oman, Qatar, the UAE, the U.K. and the U.S.”

“Mr. Modi has given us the vision of a Viksit Bharat by 2047. We have taken the initiative of not only sharing this vision with our esteemed diaspora, but have also urged them to partner our journey towards this cherished goal,” he said.

“The Indian diaspora has an important role to play in the vision of Viksit Bharat. It acts as a living bridge between their motherland and their adopted homeland. That is why the Government of India has chosen the diaspora’s contribution to a Viksit Bharat as the overarching dream of the 18th PBD.”

He said Union Ministers would chair plenary sessions while eminent Indians from various fields would moderate the sessions.