NRI's contribution to aid to India likely to be more than that of the entire US Govt’s

Indian-Americans, who have a monstrous $67.4 billion combined annual income, will be able to play a crucial part in philanthropy activities happening in India. According to a new research, this would dwarf official US foreign aid to India by nearly 10 times. This aid was reportedly $116.4 million in fiscal year 2014.

The donations given by these Indian Americans could reach up to $1.2 billion per annum, said a report published in 'Impact India'. It is a magazine for philanthropists and social innovators targeting India. The magazine is jointly published by the Bridgespan Group, Dasra, and Stanford Social Innovation Review. The same report put the "combined annual discretionary income of Americans of Indian origin" at $67.4 billion.

In the recent decades, more and more Indian have started to settle in in America, totaling over 1.9 million. In addition, another 1.6 million Americans are reported to have Indian ancestry.

"If their philanthropic contributions were consistent with those of other US households in similar income brackets, and if they directed 40 per cent of their philanthropic giving to India, $1.2 billion per year would flow from Indian diaspora donors to Indian causes," the report said.

The US aid would represent more than half of the entire amount of the annual official development aid which India receives from all countries. This is amounted to be $2.2 billion, on average, from 2005 through 2013.

These days, Indian-Americans are donating more than ever before, so that they can support broad-based social change which is aimed at reducing India's inequities. Even as their challenges are great, the potential for impact is no less.

The report also suggested that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration is likely to be in step with the upside potential for financial and non-financial support from the Indian-American diaspora. Not only this, his focus on bilateral India-US initiatives hints at his openness to connect with US constituencies, including Indian-Americans, that could contribute meaningfully to India's development.

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