印度侨民人数约为3700万，是全球规模最大的侨民群体，也可能是最成功的。他们有充分理由自豪，尤其是在美国——该国有超过300万出生于印度的人。印度裔美国家庭的中位数年收入为15.1万美元，比美国全国平均水平高出约75%。许多印度裔美国人在商业、科技和政治领域担任要职——比如桑达尔·皮查伊、萨蒂亚·纳德拉、佐赫兰·曼达尼和卡什·帕特尔。
THE INDIAN diaspora, which numbers around 37m, is the world’s biggest. It may also be the most successful. It has a compelling case to make, especially in America, home to more than 3m people born in India. The median Indian-American household earns $151,000 annually, around 75% more than the figure for America as a whole. And many Indian-Americans occupy top jobs in business, technology and politics—think of Sundar Pichai, Satya Nadella, Zohran Mamdani and Kash Patel.
这些成就不仅在印度国内受到亲戚的庆祝，也受到整个民族的自豪肯定。报纸报道和WhatsApp转发勤勉地记录所有与印度有关联的人的成就，哪怕这种联系非常遥远。最近的例子包括南非法官纳维·皮莱，她因祖先在19世纪离开印度而获此年度诺贝尔和平奖；还有世界上第一位马拉雅拉姆宇航员阿尼尔·梅农，他的父母来自印度南部。
Such achievements are celebrated back in India, not just by relatives but also by a proud nation. Newspaper reports and WhatsApp forwards diligently catalogue the accomplishments of anyone with an Indian connection, however remote. Recent examples include Navi Pillay, the South African judge awarded this year’s Nobel peace prize, whose ancestors left India in the 19th century and Anil Menon, the world’s first Malayali astronaut, a reference to his parents’ origins in the south of India.
政府鼓励这种热情。独立多年后，印度曾倾向于轻视其侨民，指责移民遗弃祖国、导致人才流失。但随着侨民人数增长和经济繁荣，关系发生了变化。在2000年代，印度人民党（BJP）首次执政全国期间，该党试图通过加强与海外印度人的联系来推进国家利益并增加自身收入（海外印度人被认为是该党的热心捐助者）。
The state encourages such enthusiasm. For years after independence, India tended to look down on its diaspora, disparaging emigrants for deserting the homeland and contributing to brain drain. But as their numbers grew and the economy boomed, the relationship changed. In the 2000s, during the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) first term in power nationally, the party sought stronger ties with Indians abroad as a way of advancing India’s interests and boosting its own coffers (overseas Indians are believed to be enthusiastic donors to the party).
在纳伦德拉·莫迪领导下，这些努力变得更加强烈。总理的外访行程常包括在体育场举行的集会，现场座无虚席，充满崇拜的非居民印度人（NRIs）。对BJP而言，乃至于许多印度人来说，NRIs的成功是印度必然崛起的又一证明。但换一种角度看，这也暴露了印度无法留住人才的失败。
Under Narendra Modi, those efforts have become more intense. The prime minister’s foreign trips often include rallies in stadiums packed with adoring non-resident Indians (NRIs).To the BJP and indeed to many Indians, the success of NRIs is yet another indicator of India’s inevitable rise. But, viewed differently, it is also an indictment of the country’s inability to hold on to its talent.
一项2023年的研究发现，在2010年印度理工学院（该国顶尖工程学院）入学考试中排名前1000的考生中，八年后有36%的人正居住在国外。而在前100名中，这一比例高达62%。同样，印度裔在国外的高管成就也暴露了国内的问题。考虑到印度经济的规模，其企业的表现远低于其应有水平。在全球按市值排名的500家最大企业中，印度仅有八家入榜。
A study in 2023 found that of the 1,000 highest scorers in the 2010 entrance exam for the Indian Institutes of Technology, the country’s top engineering colleges, 36% were living abroad eight years later. Among the top 100, the share was 62%.Similarly, the accomplishments of Indian-origin bosses abroad reveal dysfunction at home. Given the size of India’s economy, its businesses punch well below their weight. Of the world’s 500 biggest firms by market capitalisation, India is home to only eight.
中国有41家，美国则有234家。原因之一是，无论规模大小，许多印度公司都以“拉拉”式运营——即家族式 fiefdom，缺乏专业管理。另一个原因是，政府未能为企业发展创造必要条件，从基础设施到监管环境均未达标。移民在某种程度上弥补了这些不足。汇款占印度GDP的4%（而中国仅为0.2%），并支持数百万家庭。在危机时期，包括最近伊朗战争带来的冲击，侨民汇款尤为重要。
China has 41, America 234. One reason is that many Indian companies, whether small or large, are run as “lala” operations, family fiefs lacking professional management. Another is that the state has failed to create the conditions—from infrastructure to regulation—needed for them to flourish. Emigration makes up for some of these failures. Remittances amount to 4% of India’s GDP (compared with 0.2% in China) and support millions of households. During crises, including the recent shock from the Iran war, diaspora cash has been particularly helpful.
移民已成为一种社会安全阀，通过为受教育的印度人提供向外流动的机会，缓解了劳动力市场的压力。但如今，这一通道可能正在关闭。特朗普政府已收紧移民政策。10月8日，它暂停了包括多家印度公司在内的科技企业为工人申请永久居留权的担保资格，指控这些公司存在移民欺诈。澳大利亚和加拿大也在限制学生签证。
Migration has served as a social safety-valve, easing pressure on the labour market by giving educated Indians a chance of outward mobility. It may now be shutting. The Trump administration has clamped down on migration. On October 8th it suspended tech firms, including several Indian ones, from sponsoring workers for permanent residency, accusing them of immigration fraud. Australia and Canada are restricting student visas.
而且不仅是潜在移民成为目标。种族主义和怨恨正在美国的社交媒体上煽动仇恨运动。侨民不仅难以遏制这种仇恨，更难以推动印度的利益。在美国，他们未能说服特朗普政府采取有利于印度的政策。事实上，就在上个月，华盛顿的国会通过了一项立法，允许对因购买俄罗斯石油的印度征收100%的关税。
And it is not just potential migrants who are being targeted. Racism and resentment are fuelling hate campaigns on social media, especially in America. The diaspora can do little to stem the hate, let alone advance India’s interests. In America it has failed to persuade the Trump administration to adopt policies favourable to India. Indeed just last month Congress in Washington passed legislation allowing 100% tariffs on India for buying Russian oil.
侨民可能规模庞大，甚至具有影响力，但它并不是一个外交团体。莫迪总理曾称赞他的海外听众为“rashtradoot”，即印度的使者。但尽管他们对印度有着深厚的情感，侨民中鲜有人愿意返回一个体面工作稀缺、城市宜居性差的国家。这些因素同样导致了印度年轻一代的不满，他们正日益通过上街表达愤怒。在国外庆祝成功或许令人欣慰，但真正让民族自豪感的理由，应该是印度人能够在祖国繁荣发展。
The diaspora may be large and even influential, but it is no diplomatic corps. Mr Modi has hailed his overseas audience as rashtradoot, or emissaries of India. But for all their attachment to India, few in the diaspora want to return to a country where decent jobs are scarce and cities are unlivable. Those are the same factors contributing to frustrations among youngsters in India who are increasingly expressing their anger on the streets. Celebrating success abroad may feel good, but a real reason for national pride would be for Indians to flourish at home.