Discuss how immigration policies in host countries have shaped the Indian diaspora, and India's policy responses.

The laws of host countries decide whether Indians abroad can settle, work or only visit. Britain moved from open entry for Commonwealth citizens to a right of abode based on ancestry, and this shows how such laws reshaped the diaspora. India's responses have moved from tit-for-tat reciprocity to negotiated mobility.

How host-country policies shaped the diaspora

• Closing settlement routes: The UK's Commonwealth Immigrants Act, 1962 ended the automatic right of Commonwealth citizens to settle in Britain. Those seeking jobs now needed work vouchers [2]. As a result, later migration from India became selective by skill and driven by family reunion.
• Status by ancestry: The Immigration Act, 1971 limited the right of abode to people with ties to the UK [3]. Holding a British passport no longer guaranteed the right to live in Britain.
• Unequal mobility: By 1976, Indians needed permits to enter the UK, while British nationals entered India freely [1].
• Contract-labour regimes: Many Gulf and Southeast Asian states have weak laws on foreign workers and few ways to resolve grievances. This produced a temporary, low-skilled worker diaspora that is easy to exploit. India now lists 18 such states as Emigration Check Required (ECR) countries [4].

India's policy responses

• Reciprocity (1970s): In 1976, the Home Ministry considered entry permits for visitors from Commonwealth states that restricted Indians. The plan was targeted and asserted sovereign equality, though India had little bargaining leverage [1].
• Protecting workers: The Emigration Act, 1983 created the Protector General of Emigrants. Workers holding ECR passports must get emigration clearance online through eMigrate [4].
• Retaining bonds: The OCI card under Section 7A, Citizenship Act, 1955 gives foreign citizens of Indian origin a lifelong visa [5].
• Negotiated mobility: India and the UK signed the Migration and Mobility Partnership in 2021 [6]. Its Young Professionals Scheme offers 3,000 places a year to Indians aged 18–30, who can live and work in the UK for two years [7].
• Mobility through trade: Under the India–UK trade deal, the UK agreed to impose no numerical limits or Economic Needs Test on covered Indian professionals. It also reserved 1,800 places a year for Contractual Service Suppliers [8].

Host-country laws have shaped the diaspora's size, skill mix and security. India's tools have matured from mirror-image permits to welfare laws, diaspora citizenship and mobility traded in agreements. Going forward, India should combine bilateral mobility pacts, skill recognition and strong welfare protections for workers in ECR countries. This would give Indians abroad mobility with dignity, in line with SDG target 10.7 on orderly, safe migration.