Thursday, November 20, 2025

Has the reverse brain drain of Bharat started - especially for the NRIs of USA?

Finally... Yes.... Finally...

There is significant evidence and an emerging trend that indicates a reverse brain drain is underway in India, particularly involving Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) from the USA.

This shift is driven by a combination of strong "pull" factors from India and certain "push" factors from the United States.

Key Drivers: India's "Pull" Factors

  1. Booming Economic and Career Opportunities:

    • High-Value Work: Global Capability Centers (GCCs) of major multinational companies (like Microsoft, Amazon, JPMorgan) are now running strategic, complex operations from Indian soil, offering world-class roles.1

    • Startup Ecosystem: India's matured and aggressive startup landscape offers senior roles (e.g., senior engineers, product leaders) and entrepreneurial opportunities that are attracting high-skilled talent.2

    • Domestic Demand: India's rapid economic growth and ambition to become the world's fourth-largest economy have created a domestic demand for skilled engineers, analysts, and researchers that is outstripping supply.3

    • Senior Positions: Studies have shown that returning NRIs often find better opportunities for professional advancement and senior management positions in India compared to the US.4

  2. Family, Culture, and Lifestyle:

    • Familial Bonds: The overwhelming desire to be close to aging parents, extended family, and to raise children within a strong cultural and social support system is a major, deeply personal motivator.5

    • Affordable Support: The availability of affordable domestic help (cooks, drivers, maids) provides a significant quality-of-life improvement, especially for families and retirees.6

    • Cultural Connection: A longing to reconnect with Indian heritage, participate fully in festivals, and a sense of belonging are strong emotional pulls.7

  3. Governmental Incentives and Ecosystem Growth:

    • The Indian government is actively promoting schemes to attract Indian-origin scientists and researchers in STEM fields (e.g., in IITs and national labs) with repatriation packages and research grants.8

    • The expansion of the Indian research ecosystem, including AI Centers of Excellence and digital research platforms, signals domestic readiness for high-end work.9

Key Drivers: USA's "Push" Factors

  • Policy Uncertainty: Tightening immigration rules and policy uncertainty, such as high H-1B visa fees and complex long-term work permit processes, are making the US a less stable professional environment for Indian talent.10

  • Green Card Backlogs: Extremely long waiting periods for permanent residency (Green Cards) force many professionals to live with significant uncertainty about their long-term future in the US.

  • Desire for Entrepreneurship: Restrictions on F1 visa holders and certain other immigration statuses make it difficult for highly skilled individuals to start their own businesses in the US, pushing entrepreneurial minds back to India.11

Is it a full "reversal"?

While the trend is real and growing, it's important to note:

  • Brain Circulation: Some experts view this as "brain circulation" rather than a total reversal, where talent gains skills abroad and brings them back, creating a flow that benefits both countries.

  • Challenges Remain: Returning NRIs still face challenges like bureaucratic hurdles, difficulty adjusting to cultural and systemic differences in Indian institutions, infrastructure deficits, and quality-of-life concerns (e.g., urban traffic and pollution).12

Key Government Re-Entry and Collaboration Schemes

1. VAIBHAV (Vaishvik Bharatiya Vaigyanik) Fellowship

This is a new and significant program aimed at increasing the quality of research in Indian Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs).

  • Target Group: Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs), and Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs) currently working abroad who are accomplished scientists/technologists.

  • Purpose: To establish high-quality, long-term research collaborations between the Indian Diaspora and Indian institutions.

  • Support & Duration: The fellow collaborates with an Indian institution and may spend up to two months per year for a maximum of three years in India.

    • Fellowship: Approximately $5,000 per month (in equivalent Indian currency).

    • Travel/Stay: Covers business class international travel, accommodation, and contingency funds for research in India.

    • Expectation: Fellows are expected to share best practices, build long-term connections, and initiate research in cutting-edge areas.

2. Ramanujan Fellowship

Specifically designed for early-to-mid-career brilliant scientists and engineers of Indian origin who wish to return and pursue an independent research career in India.

  • Target Group: Brilliant Indian citizens/Indian Origin scientists and engineers from all over the world, typically below the age of 40 years.

  • Purpose: To provide highly selective, scientist-specific fellowships to take up scientific research positions in India.

  • Support & Duration: The duration is five years (non-extendable) and is tenable at almost any scientific institution or university in the country.

    • Fellowship: $\text{₹}1,35,000$ per month (consolidated, including HRA).

    • Research Grant: $\text{₹}7.00$ lakh per annum for consumables, travel, and research personnel.

    • Flexibility: Fellows are eligible to apply for regular research grants from various funding agencies in India.

3. Ramalingaswami Re-entry Fellowship

This scheme is focused on attracting life scientists and related professionals back to India.

  • Target Group: Indian Nationals working outside the country who would like to return to pursue research in Life Sciences, Modern Biology, Biotechnology, and allied areas.

  • Purpose: Provides an attractive avenue for Indian-origin scientists to re-establish their research career in the home country.

  • Position: Awardees are typically posted at a level equivalent to an Assistant Professor/Scientist-D.

4. VAJRA (Visiting Advanced Joint Research) Faculty Scheme

This scheme focuses on collaboration rather than permanent return, offering a short-term mechanism for overseas scientists to contribute.

  • Target Group: Overseas scientists and academicians, with an emphasis on NRIs and OCIs/PIOs.

  • Purpose: To encourage accomplished global researchers to work as adjunct/visiting faculty for a specific period of time in Indian institutions.

  • Duration: Allows a visiting faculty to work for one to three months in an Indian institution.

These government initiatives, along with the booming domestic economy, signal a clear institutional effort to make India a competitive destination for its globally dispersed talent, converting the "brain drain" into a phenomenon of "brain gain" or "brain circulation."

It's only when the gap between the unlawful and the lawful is made visible-the injustice done to the law abiding citizens is undone - The Immigration and Foreigners Act 2025

In every society, there comes a moment when clarity—legal, moral, and administrative—creates a turning point. For Bharat, that moment emerged with the Immigration and Foreigners Act 2025, a legislation that did one fundamentally important thing:

it made the difference between legal citizenship and unlawful infiltration impossible to hide.

And when that gap became visible, the natural consequence followed:
those living unlawfully began to leave.

1. Why Visibility of Law Matters

For decades, the core problem was not merely infiltration but ambiguity.
A lack of consistent documentation, weak enforcement, and overlapping rules allowed:

  • illegal entrants to blend in,
  • local authorities to look the other way, and
  • law-abiding citizens to quietly bear the burden—whether in jobs, subsidies, or security.

When the legal system does not clearly distinguish between who belongs and who does not, the cost always falls on those who follow the rules.

The 2025 Act essentially switched on a bright light in a dark room.

2. What the 2025 Act Changed

The Act (as widely discussed in policy circles) introduced three decisive shifts:

a) Documentation and Digital Verification

Stricter digital identity linkage, cross-checking with national databases, and real-time verification made it much harder to falsify residence or identity.

b) Employer and Landlord Accountability

For the first time, enforcement mechanisms placed real accountability on:

  • employers hiring undocumented individuals,
  • landlords renting to them,
  • contractors using them as cheap labour.

When the cost of sheltering illegal entrants increased, the incentive structure flipped.

c) Fast-Track Procedures

Instead of long, bureaucratic processes, the Act enabled fast-track identification and removal, which reduced the “risk-free window” that illegal residents previously enjoyed.

3. Why Bangladeshi Infiltrators Began to Flee

The shift wasn’t driven by fear alone—it was driven by loss of invisibility.

Key reasons:

  • Forged documents could be detected in minutes.
  • Employment without verification became high-risk.
  • Welfare benefits required authenticated digital IDs.
  • Police could run identity checks through mobile terminals.
  • Borders gained improved surveillance technologies.

When unlawfully staying in India no longer guaranteed safety, anonymity, or livelihood, the rational choice for infiltrators became voluntary exit.

4. Why This Matters for Law-Abiding Citizens

For years, the greatest injustice was that citizens who paid taxes, followed rules, and carried legitimate documents were treated the same as those who entered illegally.

The Act corrected this imbalance by:

  • restoring fairness in welfare distribution,
  • reducing demographic and economic distortions in border states,
  • strengthening national security,
  • and improving labour-market stability.

Most importantly, it sent a message:
the State stands with the law-abiding, not with the law-breakers.

5. The Larger Lesson

Every country faces the tension between open borders and national interest.
But the true measure of justice is not in how loudly laws are written—it’s in how clearly they are enforced.

When the gap between the lawful and the unlawful becomes visible, the system corrects itself.

The 2025 Act did exactly that.

Saturday, November 15, 2025

The 2007 Crisis: When the BJP Stood on the Brink of Forced Deregistration - resilience matters...

In the annals of Indian political history, few moments capture the fragility of democratic institutions quite like the near-deregistration of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2007. It was a year when the Election Commission of India (ECI), armed with its constitutional mandate, came perilously close to stripping the BJP of its status as a recognized national party. Accusations of financial irregularities, internal factionalism, and non-compliance with electoral norms painted a picture of a party teetering on the edge of oblivion. This wasn't just a bureaucratic skirmish—it was a high-stakes battle that could have reshaped India's political landscape. Let's dive into the facts, the drama, and the lessons from this forgotten chapter.

The Spark: Financial Opacity and the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA)

The crisis ignited in early 2007 when the ECI scrutinized the BJP's funding sources under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 1976. Reports emerged that the party had received substantial donations from overseas entities, including NRIs and foreign-based organizations, without proper disclosure. The Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), a watchdog NGO, filed complaints highlighting discrepancies in the BJP's audited accounts submitted to the ECI. Key allegations included:

- Undisclosed foreign funds:

Over ₹10 crore (approximately $2.5 million at the time) allegedly routed through dubious channels, violating FCRA norms that prohibit political parties from accepting foreign contributions directly.

- Inflated membership drives:

The BJP claimed millions of new members, but verification revealed ghost entries and paid enrollments, breaching the Representation of the People Act, 1951.

- Internal audits ignored:

Party treasurer's reports showed mismatches, with funds from the RSS-affiliated outfits not transparently accounted for. By March 2007, the ECI issued a show-cause notice to the BJP, demanding explanations within 30 days. Failure to comply, it warned, could lead to deregistration under Section 29A of the RP Act—effectively dissolving the party's legal recognition and barring it from contesting elections under its symbol, the lotus.

The Political Firestorm: Congress-Led UPA's Shadow

The timing was suspicious to BJP supporters. The Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government was in power, and the ECI—then headed by Chief Election Commissioner N. Gopalaswami—was accused of bias. BJP president Rajnath Singh thundered in press conferences that this was a "congressional conspiracy" to cripple the opposition ahead of state elections in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab.

Rajnath Singh's defense:

In a fiery speech in Lucknow, he claimed the funds were legitimate NRI donations funneled through approved banks, not "foreign" in the prohibited sense.

L.K. Advani's intervention:

The veteran leader rallied the cadre, organizing nationwide protests and petitioning President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam for intervention.

RSS mobilization:

The ideological parent, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, quietly pressured through backchannels, warning of nationwide unrest if the BJP was targeted. Opposition parties smelled blood. The Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party in Uttar Pradesh amplified the issue, hoping to poach BJP votes in the Hindi heartland.

The ECI's Hammer: Verge of Deregistration

By mid-2007, the ECI escalated. In a July hearing, it provisionally suspended the BJP's recognition in several states, citing "persistent violations." Media headlines screamed: "BJP Faces Existential Threat" (The Hindu, July 2007). A full deregistration would mean: - Loss of the lotus symbol. - Ineligibility for reserved seats or free airtime on Doordarshan. - Fragmentation into splinter groups, potentially ending the BJP's national footprint.
Insiders recall panic in the BJP headquarters at 11 Ashoka Road. Emergency meetings lasted till dawn, with lawyers poring over affidavits. A senior leader anonymously told India Today: "We were staring at political death. One stroke, and decades of building the party from the Jana Sangh ruins would vanish."

The Turnaround: Compliance, Compromise, and Survival

The BJP fought back aggressively. It submitted revised accounts, repatriated questionable funds, and expelled office-bearers linked to the irregularities. A key breakthrough came in August 2007 when the ECI accepted a ₹5 crore penalty and mandated structural reforms, including digital transparency in donations.

October 2007 reprieve:

The Commission withdrew the deregistration threat after the BJP complied, but issued a stern warning for future adherence.

Long-term impact:

This episode birthed stricter ECI guidelines on party funding, influencing the 2014 electoral bonds scheme (ironically, later scrapped in 2024). Historians argue the crisis strengthened the BJP internally. It weeded out corrupt elements and centralized control under Narendra Modi, then Gujarat CM, who emerged as a reformist figure.

Lessons from the Brink: Why It Matters Today

Eighteen years later, as the BJP dominates Indian politics, the 2007 scare feels like ancient history. Yet it underscores vital truths:

Institutional power:

The ECI's independence can humble even giants.

Funding transparency:

Opaque money remains Indian democracy's Achilles' heel—witness ongoing debates on electoral bonds.

Resilience of opposition:

The BJP's survival fueled its phoenix-like rise, culminating in 2014.Was it a genuine crackdown or political vendetta? Declassified ECI files (partially released in 2015) show legitimate concerns, but timing aligned with UPA's anti-BJP campaigns.Regardless, the episode reminds us: In democracy, no party is invincible.

Thursday, November 6, 2025

The Big Dipper (Saptarshi Mandal) and the Hindu Swastika — A Cosmic Connection...



Since time immemorial, humanity has looked to the stars for meaning, guidance, and divine connection. Among the countless constellations glittering across the night sky, the Big Dipper — known in India as the Saptarishi Mandal — holds a special place in the spiritual imagination of Bharat. Interestingly, the movement of this constellation across the heavens is believed to have inspired one of the most sacred and enduring symbols in Hindu tradition — the Swastika.


🌠 The Celestial Seven: Saptarishi Mandal

In Vedic astronomy, the Big Dipper is not merely a group of stars — it is the abode of the seven immortal sages (Saptarishis) who guard the wisdom of dharma through every age.
Each of its seven bright stars represents a revered Rishi:

  • Marichi
  • Vashistha
  • Angiras
  • Atri
  • Pulastya
  • Pulaha
  • Kratu

These sages are said to revolve eternally around the Pole Star (Dhruva Tara) — the cosmic center — symbolizing that while the world changes, the truth and knowledge they embody remain constant.


🕉️ The Swastika: Symbol of the Eternal Cycle

The word Swastika comes from the Sanskrit su-asti, meaning “well-being” or “auspiciousness.”
Long before it became misunderstood or misused in modern times, the Swastika in Bharat represented cosmic order, prosperity, and the rhythm of life.

It is a symbol of motion, not stillness — its arms extending in four directions, representing the continuous rotation of the universe through creation, preservation, dissolution, and rebirth.


✨ When the Stars Draw the Swastika

If one observes the Big Dipper through the night — or across the four seasons — an astonishing pattern emerges.
As the constellation rotates around the Pole Star, its orientation changes: north, east, south, west — each position resembling one of the arms of the Swastika.

To the ancient rishis and sky-watchers, this celestial dance was no coincidence.
It was a message written in the heavens — a reminder that the entire cosmos moves in harmony around a divine center, just as human life must revolve around truth and dharma.

Thus, the Swastika became the symbolic reflection of the Saptarishi’s movement around Dhruva, the eternal star — a sign of balance, auspiciousness, and cosmic rhythm.


🔱 The Deeper Philosophy

In Vedic thought:

  • Dhruva Tara (Pole Star) represents the unchanging divine Self (Atman).
  • Saptarishi (Big Dipper) represents cosmic motion and time (Kala).
  • The Swastika unites both — showing that within movement there is stillness, and within change lies eternity.

This profound idea — that the unchanging and the ever-changing coexist — forms the essence of Hindu cosmology and philosophy.


🌞 Conclusion: The Sky Still Speaks

Each night, as the Saptarishi Mandal revolves around Dhruva Tara, it silently redraws the Swastika in the sky — a reminder of our ancestors’ deep understanding of astronomy and spirituality.

For the rishis, observing the stars was never just science; it was a sacred dialogue between the cosmos and consciousness.
And the Swastika, born from that dialogue, continues to whisper across millennia:

“As the stars revolve around the center, so must your life revolve around truth.”

Hindu hatred is rising in the West... It's time for Hindus to WakeUp and reclaim WhoWeAre...

In recent years, several troubling patterns have appeared:

- Temple desecrations in the U.S., Canada, and the U.K. have become distressingly common.

- Students and professionals have reported being mocked for wearing bindis, tilaks, or speaking Sanskrit phrases.

- Media portrayals often reduce Hinduism to clichés — “caste, cows, and karma” — ignoring its vast philosophical depth.

- Academic narratives sometimes describe India’s civilizational story not as one of continuity and wisdom, but as a web of oppression.

These are not isolated incidents — they reflect a growing misunderstanding of what Hindu civilization represents.

But are the Hindus ready to fight back? Why should the Hindus always be at the receiving end?

It's time for waking up...

If we want to dodge this upwardly moving Hindu hatred, we must go deeper and deeper in the practice of Hinduism - I think it's the best time for the government of India to declare Sanskrit as the compulsory national language of Bharat.

Remember, a civilization is destroyed only when the people are made ignorant of their roots through deliberately obliterating their true, real history. And if we want to reclaim our true History, we must encourage learning Sanskrit - because only through this way we can go back to our roots.

And last but not the least - let's discard Unity in Diversity and embrace Unity in Unison - let's make Sanskrit that unifying thread of Bharat - stitching each and every corner of Bharat through its commonality. 

We must remember that it's the originality that sells - it's the original that attracts everybody - and not any duplicate - hence we must bring back that original Bharat - without any doping effect. We were the harbinger of originality - starting from discovering the origin of this #universe to science to philosophy to medicine to humanity and even to the greatest language - Sanskrit .

Having a common thread of language to bind each and every citizen of this great place called #Bharat is wisdom.

So Hindus must remember that Shastra and Shaastra go hand in hand.

Remember...

धर्म एव हतो हन्ति, धर्मो रक्षति रक्षितः 

Dharma Rakshati Rakshitah...

Come on... Wake up...

It's not the time for wilful blindness...

Enjoy the poem - written and recited by my wife Reema.





Jai Hind...

Jai Bharat...

Monday, November 3, 2025

The clarion call for the Hindus of Bharat - Wake up and reclaim WhoYouAre - NCERT is introducing Ayurveda in school system...





For decades, India’s education system spoke in borrowed voices — teaching our children about Newton and Darwin, but not about Charaka or Sushruta; memorizing the periodic table, but never learning that India once had its own periodic sense of the body, the plants, and the cosmos.

That silence is now breaking.

NCERT has begun introducing Ayurveda, Yoga, and other Bharatiya Knowledge Systems into the national curriculum — a move that reawakens the civilizational memory of Bharat. Under the Bharatiya Jñāna Paramparā initiative, our schools are slowly rediscovering what India always stood for: the unity of body, mind, nature, and spirit.

Ayurveda — The Science of Life


Ayurveda is not a collection of ancient prescriptions — it is a philosophy of harmony. It teaches that true health is not the absence of disease, but a balance between body, mind, and environment.

- Vata, Pitta, Kapha — early frameworks of physiology and metabolism.

- Herbal formulations — chemical wisdom refined through observation.

- Dinacharya and Ritucharya — early lifestyle science and seasonal adaptation.

- Ahara (food) and Vihara (conduct) — foundations of preventive health.

In today’s age of stress, pollution, and disconnection, Ayurveda is not just tradition — it is relevance.

Reclaiming the Bharatiya Mind


To “wake up” as a Bharatwasi is not merely to be proud of heritage; it is to understand it scientifically, teach it respectfully, and live it meaningfully.

When a student learns both Newton’s laws and Patanjali’s sutras, both Mendel’s genetics and Sushruta’s surgical logic — they learn integration, not division.

This synthesis is what makes India’s civilizational knowledge timeless:

We never rejected reason; we refined it through experience and ethics.

Jai Hind...

Jai Bharat...