RAJYA SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3126
ANSWERED ON 19/03/2026
PRAVASI TEERTH DARSHAN YOJANA
3126. SHRI KESRIDEVSINH JHALA
SHRI DEEPAK PRAKASH
DR. DINESH SHARMA
SHRI BABURAM NISHAD
SHRI ASHOKRAO SHANKARRAO CHAVAN
Will the Minister of EXTERNAL AFFAIRS be pleased to state:
(a) the number of editions conducted under Pravasi Teerth Darshan Yojana so far and the number of beneficiaries who have participated, country-wise;
(b) the details of financial assistance provided under the scheme, including coverage of travel and boarding expenses;
(c) the steps taken to expand the scheme to include more beneficiaries from Girmitiya countries;
(d) whether the scheme is being aligned with initiatives such as the Pravasi Bharatiya Express flagged off during the 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas Convention; and
(e) the monitoring mechanism in place to assess the impact of the scheme in strengthening cultural and emotional ties with the Indian diaspora?
ANSWER
THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS
(SHRI KIRTI VARDHAN SINGH)
(a) Ministry of External Affairs has conducted 5 editions of the Pravasi Bharatiya Teerth Darshan Yojana (PTDY) till date. 310 Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs)—40 in each of the first four editions and 150 in the 5th edition participated in the Programme. The country-wise lists of participants for the first 4 editions of the Programme and that for the 5th edition are attached at Annexure-I
and Annexure-II respectively.
(b) Pravasi Teerth Darshan Yojana (PTDY) was launched by the Ministry of External Affairs in FY 2018-19 for Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) in the age group of 45-65 years from 07 Girmitiya countries (Fiji, Guyana, Mauritius, South Africa, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago, France (Reunion Island)). The Scheme was envisaged to provide the PIOs from Girmitiya countries an opportunity to reconnect with their Indian roots and promote in-bound tourism through a sponsored pilgrimage tour across India. The programme was specifically targeted at those PIOs in Girmitiya countries who belonged to the lower income group and were unable to afford to visit India at their own cost. PTDY was a 17-day programme that used to be conducted in coordination with the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Ltd. (IRCTC). Under this Programme, this Ministry extended full hospitality to the selected participants during their stay in India including expenses for their 17-day tour of India conducted by the IRCTC. 90% of the return airfares of the participants from their respective countries of residence to India was also covered by this Ministry with the remaining 10% of the airfares borne by the participating PIOs. The scope of the Programme was expanded to include PIOs in the age group of 45-65 years from other countries as well across the globe, besides Girmitiya nations, during its last edition when a special train, namely the Pravasi Bharatiya Express, with 150 eligible PIOs as passengers from 26 countries, was remotely flagged off by the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India at the inauguration of the 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas at Bhubaneswar in Odisha on January 9, 2025.
(c) to (e) Following the overwhelming success of the Pravasi Bharatiya Express marked by subscriptions to the Programme over and above its capacity and based on the popularity and attractiveness of the Programme demonstrated by the eligible PIOs, Government of India decided to transform the Pravasi Bharatiya Teerth Darshan Yojana into a self-financing scheme for the Indian diaspora. It was based on the premise that the Programme constrains Indian PIOs to travel across India for tourism along with their other family members who may be of different ages and who may not qualify for the Programme. It was also believed that the interest and potential of the Indian diaspora to contribute to the fundamental pillar of promoting "tourism” of the 3Ts advocated by the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India could be leveraged by encouraging the Indian diaspora to visit India for tourism along with their friends and families through the self-financing mechanism as advocated under the "Chalo India” Scheme of the Government.
Since then, the Indian diaspora has preferred to visit India for tourism along with other members of their families and friends from different age groups independently and through self-financing ventures. Ministry has also been promoting inbound tourism to India amongst all sections of the Indian diaspora through several campaigns organised, particularly through its social media platforms. The Diaspora India Connect series being managed by this Ministry through its social media handles disseminates information and details about different touristic destinations spread all across India, diverse traditions of Indians in different regions etc, with the purpose of attracting Indian diaspora to personally witness them along with their families and friends from all age groups.
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