Pravasi Bharatiya Divas
Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) is celebrated on 9th January every year since 2003 to mark the contribution of Overseas Indian community in the development of India. January 9 was chosen as the day to celebrate this occasion since it was on this day in 1915 that Mahatma Gandhi, the greatest Pravasi, returned to India from South Africa, led India’s freedom struggle and changed the lives of Indians forever.
Since 2015, its format has been revised to celebrate the PBD once every two years and to hold theme-based PBD Conferences during the intervening period with participation from overseas diaspora experts, policy makers and stakeholders. These conventions provide a platform to the overseas Indian community to engage with the government and people of the land of their ancestors for mutually beneficial activities. These conventions are also very useful in networking among the overseas Indian community residing in various parts of the world and enable them to share their experiences in various fields.
Sixteen PBDs
To connect India to its vast overseas diaspora and bring their knowledge, expertise and skills on a common platform, the PBD Convention - the flagship event of Ministry of External Affairs is organized from 7th-9th January every year since 2003.
Sixteen PBDs have been held earlier in various places of India so far as follows:
Pravasi Bharatiya Divas | Year | Dates | Venue |
|---|
| 2003 | 9-11 January, 2003 | New Delhi |
| 2004 | 9-11 January, 2004 | New Delhi |
| 2005 | 7-9 January, 2005 | Mumbai |
| 2006 | 7-9 January, 2006 | Hyderabad |
| 2007 | 7-9 January, 2007 | New Delhi |
| 2008 | 7-9 January, 2008 | New Delhi |
| 2009 | 7-9 January, 2009 | Chennai |
| 2010 | 7-9 January, 2010 | New Delhi |
| 2011 | 7-9 January, 2011 | New Delhi |
| 2012 | 7-9 January, 2012 | Jaipur |
| 2013 | 7-9 January, 2013 | Kochi |
| 2014 | 7-9 January, 2014 | New Delhi |
| 2015 | 7-9 January, 2015 | Gandhinagar |
| 2017 | 7-9 January, 2017 | Bengaluru |
| 2019 | 21-23 January, 2019 | Varanasi |
| 2021 | 9 January, 2021 | Virtual |
The 15th PBD Convention was held from 21 to 23 January 2019 in Varanasi with Uttar Pradesh as the Partner State. Over 7000 delegates participated in the 15th PBD. In reverence to the sentiments of the larger diaspora, two attractions were added to the 15th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas – viz. visit to Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj and participation in Republic Day celebrations in New Delhi on 26 January 2019 were also offered to the PBD participants. Heads of Missions in India also participated in the Kumbh Mela.
PBD 2020 was held in New Delhi on 9th January 2020 in which EAM interacted with Diaspora in eight countries through Video Conference.
Last year, amid COVID-19 pandemic the 16th PBD was held in a virtual format on 9th January, 2021 with the theme "Contributing to Aatmanirbhar Bharat". The PBD Convention had three segments, namely Inaugural, Plenary and Valedictory. The PBD Convention was inaugurated by Shri Narendra Modi, Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, and featured a keynote address by the Chief Guest, H.E. Mr. Chandrikapersad Santokhi, Hon’ble President of the Republic of Suriname. The 15 winners of the online Bharat ko Janiye Quiz for the youth were also announced during the Inaugural Session.The event was webcast live to all Indian Missions and Posts abroad.
The Youth PBD was celebrated on the theme "Bringing together Young Achievers from India and Indian Diaspora” on 08 January 2021, and was anchored by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. The Special Guest for the event was H.E. Ms. Priyanca Radhakrishnan, Minister for Community & Voluntary Sector of New Zealand.
Regional Pravasi Bhartiya Divas (RPBD)
Ministry has been organizing Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Divas Conferences (RPBD) to reach out to a vast majority of our diaspora, who for various reasons, are unable to attend the main biennial event in India and benefit from its deliberations. This is in response to a strong and persistent demand for holding such events regionally. These have elicited enthusiastic support from the Indian diaspora and the local Governments and have been highly successful. So far, ten RPBDs have been held as per details below:
Regional Pravasi Bhartiya Divas (RPBD) | Sr. No. | City | Country | Date |
|---|
| 1 | New York | USA | 24 Sept. 2007 |
| 2. | Singapore | Singapore | 10-11 Oct. 2008 |
| 3. | The Hague | Netherlands | 19 Sept. 2009 |
| 4. | Durban | South Africa | 1-2 Oct. 2010 |
| 5. | Toronto | Canada | 8-10 June 2011 |
| 6. | Port Louis | Mauritius | 27-28 Oct. 2012 |
| 7. | Sydney | Australia | 10-12 Nov. 2013 |
| 8. | London | United Kingdom | 16-18 Oct. 2014 |
| 9. | Los Angeles | USA | 14-15 Nov. 2015 |
| 10. | Singapore | Singapore | 6-7 Jan. 2018 |
Chief Guests at PBD Conventions:
Chief Guests at PBD Conventions | Sr. No. | PBD Year | Name & Position | Country |
|---|
| 1 | 2003 | Sir Anerood Jugnauth, Prime Minister | Mauritius |
| 2 | 2004 | Shri Bharrat Jagdeo, President | Guyana |
| 3 | 2005 | Shri J.R. Ajodhia, Vice President | Suriname |
| 4 | 2006 | Shri Ahmed Kathrada, Political Activist
and a Contemporay of Nelson Mandela | South Africa |
| 5 | 2007 | Prof. S. Jayakumar, Dy. Prime Minister | Singapore |
| 6 | 2008 | Dr. Navinchandra Ramgoolam, Prime Minister | Mauritius |
| 7 | 2009 | Dr. Ramdien Sardjoe, Vice President | Suriname |
| 8 | 2010 | Dr. Khalid Hameed, Chairman, Alpha Hospital Group | UK |
| 9 | 2011 | Sir Anand Satyanand, Governor General | New Zealand |
| 10 | 2012 | H.E. Ms. Kamla Persad Bissessar | Trinidad and Tobago |
| 11 | 2013 | Mr. Rajkeswur Purryag, President | Mauritius |
| 12 | 2014 | Dato Sri G. Palanivel, Federal Minister for Natural Resources and Environment | Malaysia |
| 13 | 2015 | H.E. Mr. Donald Rabinderanauth Ramotar, President of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana | Guyana |
| 14 | 2017 | Dr. Antonio Costa, Prime Minister | Portugal |
| 15 | 2019 | Mr. Pravind Jugnauth, Prime Minister | Mauritius |
| 16 | 2021 | H.E. Mr. Chandrikapersad Santokhi, President | Suriname |
Archives
The year wise list of Speakers of various PBD events is as follows:
The year wise list of Speakers of various PBD events| Sr. No. | Year | Download |
|---|
| 1 | 2021 |  (21 KB) |
| 2 | 2019 | (21 KB) |
| 3 | 2013 | (21 KB) |
| 4 | 2012 | (19 KB) |
| 5 | 2011 | (23 KB) |
| 6 | 2010 | (22 KB) |
| 7 | 2009 | (104 KB) |
| 8 | 2008 | (84 KB) |
| 9 | 2007 | (92 KB) |
| 10 | 2006 | (83 KB) |
| 11 | 2005 | (104 KB) |
| 12 | 2004 | (93 KB) |
| 13 | 2003 | (113 KB) |
The year wise list of PBD Theme Paper is as follows:
The year wise list of PBD Theme Paper | Sr. No. | Year | Download |
|---|
| 1 | 2021 | (1.53 MB) |
| 2 | 2019 | (1.53 MB) |
| 3 | 2013 | (1.53 MB) |
| 4 | 2012 | (242 KB) |
| 5 | 2011 | (1.76 MB) |
| 6 | 2010 | (1.55 MB) |
| 7 | 2009 | (1.02 MB) |
| 8 | 2008 | (906 KB) |