Addressing a press conference on the Indian embassy premises in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday, Secretary, MOIA, Mohan Das said the government had taken a decision to establish a new university where half of the students would be drawn from an NRI background. The new university would come up in Banglore by 2010.

Besides, a diaspora knowledge network will be established. The purpose of this forum will be to share the specific skills acquired by overseas Indians with their Indian partners in common business ventures. The areas for collaboration could be as diverse as engineering, information technology, medicine and other advanced fields. Besides, an Indian Development Foundation will channel the philanthropic funding by overseas Indians into concrete projects, mainly with the help of NGOs.

Mr. Das made these observations in the presence of Indian Ambassador to the UAE Talmiz Ahmad on the eve of the two-day Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas which will be held in Chennai from January 7. An Overseas Indian Facilitation Center (OIFC) has already been established in partnership with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Mr. Das said. The aim of this forum is to propose specific business opportunities available in India, where NRIs could invest.