The 18th edition of the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) took place in the eastern Indian city of Bhubaneswar, the capital of Odisha, between January 8 and 10, 2025. With three days of sessions, speeches, world class and spectacular cultural and entertainment programmes, Bhubaneswar managed to capture the imagination of the Pravasi Indians who had gathered in large numbers at the venue in Janata Maidan. The Temple City was spruced up beautifully and Odia hospitality was seen in all its vibrancy. Several journeys were organized to religious and cultural centres in Odisha including to Lord Jagannath’s Temple in Puri.

Bhubaneswar itself has grown from a small town that became Odisha’s capital in 1949 to a bustling, busy city with an estimated population of 1.24 million today. It was planned by the German architect Otto Königsberger, the man who alongside J R D Tata had carried out the town planning for Jamshedpur, and had also designed the Berlin Olympic Stadium.

The sessions were vibrant, touching diverse topics with engaging speakers, and well moderated. There were five plenary sessions. The Plenary I held on January 8 was titled Beyond Borders: Diaspora Youth Leadership in a Globalized World. It was chaired by Dr Mansukh Mandaviya, Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports and moderated by Binny Bansal, co-founder of Flipkart. Speakers included Y B Prabhakaran, Malaysian MP, Eeshaanee Shandilya from HSBC, Don McLain Gill from the De La Salle University in Philippines, Revathy Pillai, IT business analyst and radio presenter from South Africa, Mohiuddin Mohamad Ali, vice chairman of Gafar Engineering in Muscat, and Mickela Panday, former MP, from Trinidad and Tobago and daughter of former PM Basdeo Panday. An outstanding cultural performance followed in the evening.

Plenary II on January 9 was titled Building Bridges, Breaking Barriers, Stories of Migrant Skills and was chaired by Union Minister of State for MSMEs Sushri Shobha Karandlaje and moderated by P Kumaran, Special Secretary (ER & DPA), MEA. Speakers included former MoS MEA V Muraleedharan, Ashok Mago, Chairman and CEO, Mago & Associates, USA, Rohit Ratnakar Rao, founder CEO of Medrock Corporation, Vilwanathan Krishnamurthy, social worker from Berlin, Sopnendu Mohanty, Chief Fintech Officer at Monetary Authority of Singapore, Ashok Kalra, MD and Partner Mughal Mahal Group, Kuwait, and Kandarp Mehta, actor/professor and senior lecturer from Spain.

Plenary III, on the same day, was on Green Connections, Diaspora’s Contributions to Sustainable Development and was chaired by Minister for Electronics and IT, Information & Broadcasting and Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw and moderated by P.K. Das, Chairman and MD of IREDA. Speakers included Hambyrajen Narsinghen, Minister from Mauritius, Rahul Fotedar, Founder of Morrow Batteries in Norway, Jagdish Nainwal, CEO of UPL for LATAM in Mexico, Indronil Sengupta, Chairman of Indian Business Chambers, Hanoi, Vietnam, Aditya Yellepeddi from Swiss Biotech Association, Switzerland, Jitender Sachdeva, Group President Skipper Seil Ltd, Nigeria and Anju Virmani from the Ontario Power Board in Canada.

Plenary IV on January 10 was on Diaspora Divas: Celebrating Women’s Leadership and Influence--Nari Shakti and was chaired by Dr S Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister, Indian Government, and moderated by Ritu Karidhal, Indian scientist and aerospace engineer, ISRO. Panelists included Shullete Cox, President, Jamaica Promotions Corporation (JAMPRO), Jamaica, Poonam Sagar, Director & Co-Owner PT Infotech Solutions, Jakarta, Indonesia, Sudha Majithia, social worker from Tanzania, Indrani Rampersad, visiting professor at the BHU from Trinidad and Tobago, Maitri Joshi, social worker from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Sakala Appachu Debrass, marketing professional from Qatar, Koki Veber, entrepreneur from Slovenia, and Loveleen Brenna, CEO of Seema from Norway.

Plenary V on the same day was on Diaspora Dialogues: Stories of Culture, Connection and Belongingness. It was chaired by Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Minister for Culture and Tourism and moderated by K Nandini Singla, DG (ICCR). Panelists included Mahendra Gondeea, Minister of Arts and Culture, Government of Mauritius, Ranveer Brar, Indian chef, Charmi Chheda, writer, filmmaker from Bhutan, Arnab Roychuramony, Owner, Menkar LLC, from Ukraine, Vanisa Dhiru, Commissioner, NZ National Commission for UNESCO Commissioner from New Zealand, Aishwarya Hegde, Director, Deepam Odissi Academy from Oman, Paresh Kumar Ratilal Mehta, Trustee of Shree Sanatan Dharma Mandal Kampala from Uganda, Shankar Kandasamy, Head, Department of Bharatanatyam at the Temple of Fine Arts, Malaysia, and Urmila Chakraborty, writer and translator from Italy.