Tuesday 07 / January / 2025
Muscat: The largest-ever Indian diaspora delegation from Oman will participate in the 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) Convention in Odisha from January 8 to 10, 2025.
With over 300 registrations on the PBD portal, the participating delegation includes representatives from various community groups, business leaders, and prominent members of the Indian diaspora in Oman.
Amit Narang, Ambassador of India to Sultanate of Oman, flagged off the delegation at a glittering ceremony at the Embassy on January 5, 2025.
He unveiled a specially designed logo for PBD participants from Oman and felicitated the participating members with merchandise kits featuring the logo.
The logo titled “PRAVASI FROM OMAN” symbolises the historical journey of the diaspora in Oman and their participation in the PBD Convention.
In his address to the gathering, Ambassador Amit Narang said "Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is an important platform for our diaspora to reconnect with Bharat and contribute meaningfully to its developmental journey. I encourage all of you to make the most of this visit and represent the Indian community in Oman with pride."
This year, two distinguished members of the Indian diaspora in Oman will participate as panel speakers at the PBD Convention. Mohiuddin Mohammad Ali, Vice Chairman, Galfar Engineering and Contracting SAOG will participate in Plenary Session 1 on ‘Diaspora Youth Leadership’ while Aishwarya Hegde, Founder Director of Deepam Odissi Academy will speak at Plenary Session 5 on ‘Diaspora Dialogues: Stories of Culture, Connection, and Belonging’.
On the sidelines of PBD 2025, a special exhibition on diaspora archives curated by National Archives of India will showcase digitised documents highlighting the Indian diaspora's history in Oman. The exhibition is based on a landmark project conducted by the Embassy of India, Muscat that successfully digitised over 7,000 records in English, Arabic, Gujarati and Hindi from the private collections of long-resident historical Indian merchant families in Oman. A senior delegation from the Hindu Mahajan families of Oman, whose documents were part of this initiative, will attend the exhibition at PBD 2025. This first of its kind exhibition is a proud moment for the Indian diaspora in Oman as their motherland recognises and celebrates their rich history as pravasis abroad.
The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas brings together the Indian community worldwide and remains an important link between India and its global diaspora.
The strong participation of the delegation from Oman highlights the time-tested bonds of the Indian community in Oman with India, as well as their enthusiasm to contribute to Bharat’s rise as a global power.
