A recent flutter among the Indian American community concerning the proposed changes in the Overseas Citizenship of India rules has been a cause for relief. On cue, the Consulate General of India in New York issued a lucid and heartfelt clarification that no new restrictions have been imposed, thereby ending all swirling rumors that had caused so much consternation among the hordes of overseas Indians.
It relayed the information to the community directly via a post shared on X:
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We have come across news reports spreading false information that restrictions have been placed on OCI cardholders in the recent past. Friends in the Indian American community are hereby informed that no new change has been introduced in the past for OCI card holders. Provisions of Gazette Notification http://F.No. 26011/CC/05/2018-OCI dated March 4, 2021, regarding rights of OCI cardholders continue to remain in force.
This was a message that sounded like a wave of calm after a storm. For many, this was an assurance that their rights and privileges as OCI cardholders remained very secure, a status which for quite a long period of time had provided a bridge between identities and homelands. The Indian diaspora, over 32 million strong worldwide, felt they were at risk of losing privileges accorded to the OCI card, a document symbolic of their bondage with India for so long.
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For many in the Indian American community, OCI status represents much more than just a bureaucratic card; it speaks to identity. To them, the loss was akin to a part of losing their connection with India. Clarity now allows millions to breathe a little easier as they know that the roots that tie them to India remain safe and intact.
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