UTTAR PRADESH PRAVASI DIWAS A BIG HIT WITH NRIs OF UTTAR PRADESH

With the celebration of the Uttar Pradesh Pravasi Diwas (UPPD) in January 2016 Uttar Pradesh became the first Indian state to tap investments from Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) and Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) from Uttar Pradesh in the state on the lines of Pravasi Bharatia Diwas celebrated by the Government of India since 2003.

The Uttar Pradesh government signed 13 Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) with international organisations headed by NRIs or PIOs on the very first day of the celebration.  These include Global Organisation of People of Indian Origin, South Pacific University and Indo –Canadian Chamber of Commerce among others.

In his inaugural address, Akhilesh Yadav’s managed to stir strong sentiments among the NRIs were made to feel that they are still an important part of Uttar Pradesh. His commitment to see the NRI projects through without hassles went down well with the Indian diaspora.

India is known to the outside world as the ‘Country of the Taj Mahal.’  But, the “City of the Taj’ is in Uttar Pradesh.  That is what induced chief minister Akhilesh Yadav to host the UPPD in Agra instead of Lucknow.  He felt that the lure of the Taj would attract more delegates to the UPPD. 

The UPPD turned out to be such a big hit that it surprised even the chief minister Akhilesh Yadav.  It was attended by over 200 delegates and the NRI department had to close the registration of delegates before the opening day of UPPD as the venues could not have accommodated more delegates along with government officials, media and security personnel needed to keep the arrangements in place. That is a huge draw for a single state considering the fact that the number of delegates attending Pravasi Bharatia Diwas celebrated by the Government of India is between 1,500 and 2,000.

UPPD is the result of the initiative of the Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, who happens to be the youngest chief minister of India, in setting up a separate NRI department in Lucknow way back in July 2014. The NRI department is engaged in creating a database of NRIs and PIOs from Uttar Pradesh settled across the world, through Indian embassies in those countries.  

Akhilesh Yadav inaugurated a website for the NRIs and PIOs from Uttar Pradeshhttp://www.upnri.com in January 2015 and issued UP NRI cards to facilitate smooth processing of business proposals of NRIs and PIOs from Uttar Pradesh.  Subsequently, the Uttar Pradesh government established a Migrant Resource Centre in Lucknow which is the nodal agency for the NRI department in the Uttar Pradesh government.  The NRI department functions from its head office in Lucknow under its Principal Secretary, Sanjiv Saran. Regional centres of the UP NRI department are likely to be established at Varanasi, Gorakhpur, Kanpur and Noida.  The thrust areas for NRI investment are infrastructure and development projects, education, finance, tourism etc. 

UPPD was a three-day affair.  It was inaugurated on January 4, 2016 by throwing open an exhibition displaying the achievements of the Uttar Pradesh government in its development agenda and highlighting areas of interest for investment by NRIs and PIOs.  Sixteen NRIs were awarded the UP Apravasiya Bharatiya Ratna Puraskar in recognition of their outstanding performances  in the fields of their choice in foreign lands and for their contributions to the development of Uttar Pradesh.

Since Akhilesh Yadav took over reigns of the Uttar Pradesh government in 2012, Uttar Pradesh has made significant investments in development projects.  These include Agra-Lucknow expressway which is an extension of the Yamuna expressway from Noida to Agra to connect Lucknow with Delhi, and, Poorvanchal expressway; metro rail projects in Lucknow, Noida, Ghaziabad, Agra, Kanpur, Meerut and Varanasi; development of IT city in Lucknow; power sector and alternative energy resources; education and health etc.  In the last few years, the growth rate of Uttar Pradesh has far exceeded the growth rate of India as a nation. This is what infuses confidence in the NRIs and encourages them to view Uttar Pradesh as a preferred destination for their investments.

In the evening, renowned playback singer Rahat Fatah Ali Khan, entertained the guests with his mellifluous songs and kawwalis.  On the second day, the delegates were escorted to the Taj after which chief minister inaugurated the project for development of the Agra city as per international standards.  This includes a Mughal Museum, Agra Street Café, Agra Heritage Centre and a Taj Orientation and Interpretation Centre.  Later in the day, panel discussions were held on a variety of topics.  The evening saw a dance recital by the disciples of the Kathak maestro Birju Maharaj.  The third day was devoted entirely to a conducted tour of Agra, Mathura and Vrindavan for the delegates as tourism is also a major thrust area for Uttar Pradesh besides development projects.

While UPPD was designed to attract investments from NRIs and PIOs of Uttar Pradesh, the proposal from the Abu Dhabi based Keralite NRI Yusuf Ali to invest  rupees 1,000 crore to open a hotel and a retail chain in Uttar Pradesh employing over 3,000 employees took everyone by surprise.  This has enhanced the scope of investment through UPPD beyond the borders of Uttar Pradesh.