Are Smart Indians leaving India?

Sanjay Mehrotra currently serves as the CEO of Micron Technology. Shantanu Narayen an Indian-American business executive holds the position of CEO at Adobe. Satya Nadella serves as both Chairman and CEO of Microsoft. Then again, Sundar Pichai is the CEO of Google and this list goes on.

At this time, many Indians are happy about the achievements of these people, and some debate it. Their success makes India making its mark globally, but some people also wonder if India is losing talented individuals.

Let us look at some figures:-

According to available Ministry of External Affairs data, the statistics reveal a notable trend: 134,561 Indians have given up their citizenship in 2018, followed by 144,017 in 2019. The numbers saw a dip to 85,256 in 2020 but then rose sharply to 163,370 in 2021. Surprisingly, 2022 recorded a significant surge with 225,620 instances, and the trend persisted with 87,026 cases until June 2023.

Infact, As per Henley’s & Partners’ Private Wealth Migration Report 2023 - China is predicted to lose the most millionaires in 2023, with 6,500 likely to leave India.

Further, in 2022, India saw a decrease in the number of rich people (millionaires) by 7,500. Among the top countries facing this loss, China is in the lead followed by India.

Now, where are the most millionaires migrating? You’ll ask.

In 2023, many wealthy people prefer moving to Australia for its welcoming immigration system and attractive features like good weather, safety, healthcare, and a strong economy. The UAE is also a popular choice, expecting around 4,500 millionaires, drawn to its safety, diverse economy, low taxes, and luxury options.

But you know, when we are talking about the most populous country in the world, exporting talent should be normal. Yet, we've got to wonder, is this holding back India's ability to come up with innovative capacity, and is it putting a damper on our economic growth? Just something to think about.

Back in the '70s, way before everyone was talking about globalization, "brain drain" was the buzz phrase making the rounds in India.

So what is brain drain?

"Loss of human capital" is a term used to describe the migration of skilled labor from a developing country to the developed world.

Now why does this happen? You’ll think.

Mostly due to conflict, political instability, lack of opportunity or health concerns in the existing country.

On top of that, Non-residential Indians are turning into "not-returning" Indians, and even the trend of "reverse brain drain" has come to a standstill.

Besides, there’s a growing feeling of discontent among students that the current Indian education system isn't really getting them ready for the challenges of our increasingly globalized world.

According to various news reports, over half of the top-ranking students in Class 10 and Class 12 exams from 1996 to 2015 have moved abroad, with many studying or working overseas.

https://www.indiatimes.com/thought-starter/great-indian-brain-drain

Hence, the most brilliant Indian minds are residing and working in foreign countries.

One big reason why India's young and skilled workforce heads out is to find better rewards for their hard work and talent. Yet, it's not just about higher salaries – the overall social safety net is a significant factor pushing families to relocate outside India.

In education India has come a long way from ensuring that almost every child goes to primary school to the implementation of National Education Policy 2020 envisioning a massive transformation in education.

However, tackling higher education remains a challenge. While we have exceptional institutions like the IITs and IIMs, none of them make it to the top global universities.

Colleges in India also have skyrocketing cutoffs so students leave to study abroad to land better paying jobs and these are expensive degrees but they attract hundreds of thousands  of Indian students. Now, that’s considerable!

Then we have social security and the quality of life - better roads, hospital, schools, and gender equality which is a neglected dimension of brain drain.

Presenting figures, India now ranks 127th out of 146 nations in terms of gender parity, an improvement from 135th place last year, as per the latest Global Gender Gap Report for 2023.

Although there has been a 64.3% reduction in the gender gap, it may be a bit of a flex to call this reason for celebration. India performs poorly in ensuring equal access for both men and women to economic participation and opportunities, scoring less than 40% in terms of parity.

While there are improvements in salary and income parity, the percentages of women in technical and senior positions have declined.

This arises from gender disparities in education, labor force participation, and income levels within the entire system. Thus, many highly skilled women opt to move abroad with no plans of returning.

So the fact remains that people are leaving, but at what cost?

Brain drain in India causes a lot of problems. We don't have enough skilled people, especially in important areas like healthcare and technology. It also makes it harder for us to come up with new ideas and do research. As the Hotmail co-founder said:-

The people who migrate abroad are usually well-paid professionals, so when they go, the government loses money from taxes, which hurts our economy. Plus, a ton of money flows out of India every year because many students go abroad for education. This whole situation makes it challenging for our country to grow and develop.

So what can be done?

The initial action in this area involves establishing an industry-classroom connection. Colleges should conduct research to identify valuable skills and then design relevant courses. The government should publish reports on global job markets, annually assessing the demand for skilled workers in various domains, and disseminate this information to the public.

Also, Indian education should focus on including everyone instead of being exclusive, and this means making it easier for people to get in.

Lastly, we should invest heavily in our research and development. According to a report from the World Economic Forum, there is a clear connection between a country's ability to retain talent and the percentage of its GDP spent on research and development.