United Nations

India has adopted a “holistic approach” to migration governance that places the welfare, protection and empowerment of emigrants at its core, Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh has said.

Addressing a special event organised by the Permanent Mission of India to the UN on Thursday on the margins of the second International Migration Review Forum (IMRF), Singh highlighted India’s “pioneering” digital initiative aimed at facilitating mobility and protection of its migrants.

“The Indian migration story is both vast and dynamic. We have a diaspora of over 34 million people spread all across the globe, encompassing more than 200 countries, and our global community has served to connect economies, cultures and ideas through many centuries,” he said.

Singh said the contribution of the Indian diaspora through remittances, investments and knowledge exchange continues to play a vital role not only in India’s development but also in the countries they’ve integrated in.

“Over the years, India has adopted a holistic approach to migration governance - one that places the welfare, protection and empowerment of emigrants at its core,” he said.

“This approach recognises that migration is not merely a movement of the people, but it is a continuum that spans pre-departure preparation, safe transit, dignified employment and eventual return and reintegration back in our societies,” he added.

Singh shared with the UN audience and member states India’s “pioneering initiative” of the ‘e-Migrate’ platform, highlighting ways in which the country is harnessing the power of digital innovation.

He added that the e-Migrate mobile application allows users easy access to major services available on the portal, which includes tracking of application status, obtaining a list of registered and as well as blacklisted recruitment agents and filing of grievances.

India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Harish Parvathaneni said the IMRF gathering is happening at a time when “migration and migrants have become a politically contested terrain”.

Parvathaneni said that India is “firmly committed” to legal and regular migration pathways.

“With an Indian diaspora of 34 million spread almost in all parts of the world, we have a firm and vital interest in ensuring regular migration pathways are encouraged, solidified and strengthened.

“Yet we are also very clear that the distinction between migrants and refugees should be very, very clear,” Parvathaneni said.

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The envoy also highlighted the use of the India digital stack to develop practical solutions for migrants at population scale and conveyed India’s readiness to assist other nations and partners in adopting such open-source digital platforms for migrant welfare and management.