Overseas Indian Facilitation Centre (OIFC) For Overseas Indians launched

The government has launched an Overseas Indian Facilitation Centre (OIFC), a one-stop shop to help overseas Indians invest in India. An agreement to this effect was signed between the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA) and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) at a function in New Delhi. The CII is the private sector partner and host institution of this not-for-profit neutral trust.

The Union Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs, Shri Vayalar Ravi addressing the media during the launching of Overseas Indian Facilitation Center, in New Delhi on May 28, 2007.

Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi, launched the OIFC and also launched a website of the new platform, www.oifc.in. He said that the objective of the OIFC is to promote overseas Indian investment in India and facilitating business-to-business partnership between Indian businesses and overseas Indians.

Minster  Ravi said,  "Overseas Indians number around 25 million and are spread across 130 countries," and added that  "We want overseas Indians to benefit from the investment opportunities in India."  Expanding on  the objectives of the trust, he said, "It will promote overseas Indian investment into India by giving authentic and real time information. It will also establish a diaspora knowledge network by creating a database of overseas Indians, who would act as knowledge diaspora and whose knowledge resources could be utilized by using the ICT platform."

Among other objectives of the trust are: functioning as a clearing house for all investment-related information; assisting states in India to promote investment opportunities to overseas Indians in the infrastructure and social sectors; and providing a host of advisory services to persons of Indian origin (PIOs) and non-resident Indians (NRIs). "These would include matters such as consular questions, stay in India, and investment and financial issues," the minister said.