Wagah Border trade and travel crossing, Photo: Kamran Ali via Wikimedia Commons
Nearly half of India’s migrants are in just three countries: the United Arab Emirates, Pakistan and the United States, Pew Research Center said in a surprising revelation.
The United Arab Emirates is the top destination country for Indian migrants, now numbering 3.5 million.Over the past two decades, millions of Indians have migrated there to find employment as laborers.
Pakistan has the second-largest number of migrants, with 2 million, the Research organization said in a disclosure that contradicts the common perception about Pakistan as being antagonistic toward Indians.
Given the two countries are often locked in a tense situation along the disputed border in Kashmir, the number of Indians living in Pakistan is also huge. The Pew report does not tell reasons or factors that could have contributed to migration of Indians to Pakistan but they might be familial ties, economic opportunity or even conditions of Muslims in India.
While India is already on a path to robust economic progress, Pakistan – despite the ongoing fight against terrorist groups- has recently made some significant strides with investment inflows from China and an expanding middle class stimulating activity with appetite for services. But Pakistan is placed several notches above India in the World Economic Forum’s rankings on inclusive development and growth.
The report also reveals that almost 2 million more live in the United States, making up the country’s third-largest immigrant group.
The report explains that India’s religious minorities have been more likely to migrate internationally.
The findings say religious minorities make up a larger share of India’s international migrant population than they do among the nation’s domestic population, according to 2010 Pew Research Center estimates.
For example, about 19% of the Indian international migrant population was Christian, compared with only 3% of the population in India. Similarly, an estimated 27% of the Indian international migrant population was Muslim, compared with 14% of the population in India. The reverse is true for Hindus: Only 45% of India’s international migrant population was Hindu, compared with 80% of the population in India.
India is also one of the world’s major destinations for international migrants.
Around 5.2 million immigrants lived in India by 2015, making it the 12th-largest immigrant population in the world. The overwhelming majority of India’s immigrants are from neighboring countries such as Bangladesh (3.2 million), Pakistan (1.1 million), Nepal (540,000) and Sri Lanka (160,000).
