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GPSC (Gujarat)Stage 2: Main Examination
Gujarati Diaspora: Migration and Contributions
What the official syllabus says
GPSC Main Examination, Paper IV: General Studies-I, (C) Indian Society.
- Gujarati Diaspora: Influence and Contributions: Migration patterns and the global presence of the Gujarati community. Socio-economic, political, and cultural contributions of the Gujarati diaspora.
Topics in detail
The line has two parts: how and where Gujaratis migrated, and what the diaspora has contributed. Learn it country by country and phase by phase.
Migration patterns
- Old Indian Ocean trade: Kachchhi and Saurashtra traders in Oman, Zanzibar and East Africa (for example Allidina Visram)
- Colonial period: traders in South Africa (the firm of Dada Abdulla, which took Gandhi to Natal in 1893), Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Burma and Aden
- Expulsion of Asians from Uganda (1972) and 'twice migrants' to Britain (for example Leicester)
- Migration to the United States after 1965 and to Canada and Australia; students and professionals
- Gulf migration for work
- Diamond trade networks: Palanpuri Jains in Antwerp; Surat and Mumbai links
Global presence
- Major centres: the UK, the USA, Canada, East Africa, South Africa, the Gulf, Australia
- Community bodies, Gujarati samajs and temples (for example of the Swaminarayan movement)
- Gujarati press and media abroad
Socio-economic contributions
- Entrepreneurship: retail, hospitality (the motel sector in the USA), pharma, diamonds
- Remittances, investment in Gujarat, philanthropy (schools, hospitals, village development)
- Professionals: medicine, engineering, IT, academia
Political and cultural contributions
- Gandhi's South African experience as a diaspora story
- Participation in politics and public life in host countries
- Navratri and Garba abroad, Gujarati food, language schools
- Bridges in trade and diplomacy between India and host countries
Policy and links with India
- Overseas Citizenship of India (the Person of Indian Origin card was merged into it in 2015)
- Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (9 January, the day of Gandhi's return in 1915)
- The Gujarat government's Non-Resident Gujarati (NRG) Foundation
- Issues: brain drain and brain gain, racial discrimination abroad, illegal migration routes
Phases of migration
| Period | Main destinations | Who went |
|---|---|---|
| Before the 19th century | Oman, Gulf, East African coast | Traders from Kachchh and Saurashtra |
| Colonial period | East Africa, South Africa, Burma, Aden | Traders, clerks, artisans |
| 1960s and 1970s | United Kingdom | Families from East Africa, including Uganda's expelled Asians |
| After 1965 | USA, Canada, Australia | Professionals, students, family members |
| Recent decades | Gulf, Europe, USA | Workers, entrepreneurs, students |
Effects on Gujarat
- NRI villages of Charotar and Kachchh (for example Madhapar) with remittance-funded banks, schools and hospitals
- Changing marriage patterns and family structures
- Investment and business links; the diaspora in state investment summits
- Social issues: ageing parents left behind, irregular migration
Overlaps
- India and its diaspora in international relations: General Studies-II.