US Hosts Largest NRI Community in World

Hyderabad: The United States, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Canada have the largest Indian populations living outside India, according to data released by the Ministry of External Affairs.

The United States tops the list with 60.79 lakh Indians, followed by the UAE with 43.44 lakh and Canada with 32.47 lakh. Malaysia is fourth with 29.02 lakh Indians, while Saudi Arabia has 27.51 lakh. Myanmar follows with 20 lakh, South Africa 18 lakh, Sri Lanka 16.07 lakh, the United Kingdom 12.83 lakh and Kuwait 10.39 lakh.

While countries such as the US, Canada and the UK continue to attract Indians for higher education, skilled jobs and permanent settlement, several other nations have large Indian communities because of historical migration and employment opportunities.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Gulf countries remain major destinations for Indian workers because of strong demand in construction, healthcare, engineering, retail, hospitality and other service sectors. Thousands of Indians move to the Gulf nations as migrant workers every year.

Similarly, thousands of Indians work in Malaysia in the business, education and healthcare sectors. The Indian diaspora in Malaysia makes up to 6.9 per cent of the country's population, according to the Malaysian Department of Statistics, and represents the third-largest ethnic group in Malaysia.

Top 10 countries with Indian Population

1 United States of America 60,79,221

2 United Arab Emirates 43,44,008