Spread the ‘true’ India story, use 'Made in India' products, Modi exhorts at Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas

The sales pitch was only fitting. With about 3,500 accomplished Indian-origin people from various walks of life from about 70 countries across the world in attendance, Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a more than 36-minute-long speech on Thursday held out India’s legacy of past glories, the hurdles it faced on the way, and where the world’s most populous country stands at this point in history.

With the audience listening in rapt attention at the biannual Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas (PBD) 2025 being held in Bhubaneswar—only now and then breaking into applause—Modi said: “Whichever country you stay in, come forward and tell the new generations who do not know of it—the true story of India's prosperity, the long dark chapter of slavery, and our struggles… India is now being known as the ‘Vishwabandhu’ (a friend to the world).”

“You have a big role in making India’s local go global. Please buy ‘Made in India’ food packets, clothes etc. If you do not get them in the country where you stay, please order online. Please use ‘Made in India’ products in your kitchens, drawing rooms, and include them in your gifts. It will be a big contribution from you in the making of a Viksit Bharat.”

The Odisha capital, decked up to welcome the PM and his ministerial colleagues, is hosting the 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas (PBD 2025), the government’s flagship event to acknowledge and celebrate the contributions of the Indian diaspora in various fields and also to help foster stronger connections.

With pleasant weather and a slightly nippy winter, Bhubaneswar is getting more than the usual number of tourists due to the PBD with heavy hotel occupancy. Roadside trees have been decorated with colourful lights with posters of PM Modi and Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Chandra Majhi springing up at regular intervals.

In his speech, the PM also pitched for creating a database of ‘girmitiyas’, their native origins, the stories of their lives, their challenges and journeys.

‘Girmitiyas’ were indentured Indian labourers shipped by the British colonial government on difficult voyages in the 19th and early 20th centuries to work on plantations. This is how Indian-origin people ended up in countries like Mauritius, Fiji, South Africa, Kenya, Seychelles, Malaysia, Singapore, Trinidad and Tobago, Suriname and other places.

Pointing out a specific instance of the vital role Odisha’s seafarers played in spreading Indian culture, foreign minister S. Jaishankar in his address said: “The hosting of this PBD in Odisha is reflective of the Modi Sarkar’s ‘Purvodaya’ policy. In so many ways, Odisha represents the full richness of our history and culture.”

“The famous Bali yatra is actually a precursor of what is today the Government of India’s ‘Act East’ policy. When we define ourselves as an Indo-Pacific nation, we do so from the Eastern seaboard of Odisha. This gathering should inspire you all to nurture more strongly our heritage, traditions and identity," Jaishankar said.

‘Purvodaya’ is a government plan for the all-round development of five Indian states that include Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha, West Bengal and Jharkhand.

PBD is celebrated on January 9 to mark the day Mahatma Gandhi returned to India from South Africa in 1915.