Chapter 1:- INTRODUCTION AND RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
1.1. INTRODUCTION: INTRODUCTION:
In this study, the issue of Brain Drain is studied in relation to different causes. These causes are varied and we see some of these reasons in detail like Education, Standard of living, Job Opportunities etc. Each of these issues has different reasons for surfacing and they are challenging to solve because of various reasons. These causes and measures for overcoming this problem shall be elaborated in this study stu dy..
1.2. PURPOSE OF STUDY:
The purpose of the study is is to study the concept of Brain Drain and know the factors factors causing this phenomenon and the measures that can be used to solve this. t his.
1.3. OBJECTIVES OF STUDY:
The Objectives of the study are as follows:-
To understand the concept of Brain Drain
To study the causes cau ses of Brain Bra in Drain
To study the problems faced by developing countries like India
To study the measures that can be used to overcome brain drain
1.4. SCOPE OF STUDY:
In this study we shall see the different problems faced by developing countries especially India and the measures that can be used to overcome it. 1
1.5. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY:
The research is a descriptive research as it gives the causes and effects of Brain Drain and try to suggest ways to reduce/ overcome this problem.
1.6. SOURCES OF DAT DATA:
The collection of data mainly depends upon secondary source of information i.e. data that is already available through-
1. Magazines 2. Websites 3. Newspapers 4. Reference Books etc
1.7. RESEARCH LIMITATIONS:
There were limitations collecting data because of confidentiality and since there are many reasons that lead to brain drain but only a few of them are covered here. There were limitations because of resource and time constraints.
1.8. PLAN OF STUDY:
This study is in different chapters namely
Introduction & Research Methodology
Introduction to Brain Drain
Causes of Brain Drain
Conclusion
Bibliography
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Chapter 2:- INTRODUCTION TO BRAIN DRAIN
2.1. INTRODUCTION: INTRODUCTION:
Rapid globalization processes embrace more and more fields generating many economic, social, cultural, and other changes all over the world. These processes inevitably affect national labour markets, raising increasingly intensive and multi directional labour movements.
Two main tendencies stand out in the contemporary global migrations: 1) Continually growing highly-skilled migration in all the flows and 2) The problem of “brain drain” increasingly affecting less developed countries. This phenomenon is mainly influenced by a rapid progress of science and technology that generates a steady growing demand for highly – skilled skilled labour force in the international labour market (IT professionals are one of the best examples).
Negative demographic changes with the ageing population populat ion in the advanced economies is another strongest reason to pull immigrant labour force. Importance of labour migration manifests itself primarily in the th e changes caused in the t he national nat ional labour markets. In the t he long run it makes an impact on the whole national economy and society. International labour migration is being interpreted as a positive appearance for the global productivity as it equalizes wage and welfare gaps between different countries. For some country, however, it may cause very contradictory effects.
Migration is the movement by people from one place to another with the intentions of settling temporarily or permanently in the new location. The movement is often over long distances and from one country to another, but internal migration is also possible; indeed, this is the dominant form globally. Migration may be individuals, family units or in large groups. One such effect of Migration is Brain Drain.
Brain Drain is a unsolved issue. Brain drain, which is the action of having highly skilled and 3
educated people leaving their country to work abroad, has become one of the developing countries concern. Brain drain is also referred to as human capital flight. More and more third world science and technology educated people are heading for more prosperous countries seeking higher wages and better working conditions.
International trade theories assume factors of production are not mobile between countries. Movement of goods between countries is a substitute for movement of factors of production. Supporters of free trade argued that fair movement of goods between the countries equalizes factor prices in the countries part icipating in the trade.
The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and subsequently the WTO promoted free or liberal trade in goods and services. WTO also promoted liberal movement of capital between nations. Such a liberal approach however, was not extended to the movement of labor. Developed and rich countries are reluctant to allow laborers a free access to their countries on several reasons such as security of host country, culture, religion, economic and political.
The fact however is migration of labor has been taking place since historical times, though in a limited way. There was a large scale migration of Europeans to the New World (North America), subsequently to Australia and New Zealand. Indians had migrated to African countries and in recent decades to USA, Canada, Australia and European countries. Many have migrated though only for a limited period, for rendering services to Gulf countries (West Asia/ Middle East), as these countries do not allow outsiders to settle down permanently except in certain exceptional cases.
Human capital flight, sometimes called brain drain, refers to the emigration of intelligent, welleducated individuals for better pay or conditions, causing their places of origin to lose skilled people, or "brains." Typically, such emigrating individuals have learned English and have moved to the United Kingdom, the United States or some other English-speaking country. Brain drain is common in developing nations, particularly in former African colonies of the United Kingdom, the island nations of theCaribbean, and in centralized economies such as the former East Germany and the Soviet Union. China and India have recently topped the list of those nations experiencing an exodus of skills and intelligence through human capital flight.
4
Brain drain has also been used to refer to situations in which individuals fail to complete given tasks as a result of extreme stress or burnout. Theoretical physicist Albert Einstein, who emigrated to the United States to escape Nazi persecution, is an example of human capital flight as a result of political change.
The term "brain drain" was coined by the Royal Society to describe the emigration of "scientists and technologists" to North America from post-war Europe.
2.2. TYPES OF BRAIN DRAIN:
There are various types of brain drain such as organizational, geographical, industrial etc. A brief description on this is as under –
Organizational: The flight of talented, creative, and highly qualified employees from large
corporations — e.g. Yahoo, HubSpot, and Microsoft — that occurs when employees perceive the direction and leadership of the company to be unstable or stagnant, and thus, unable to keep up with their personal and professional ambitions.
Geographical: The flight of highly trained individuals and college graduates from their area
of residence, for instance, those migrating from the mid-western United States to the coastal states and large metropolises.
Industrial: The movement of traditionally skilled workers from one sector of an industry to
another. For example, jobs in the United States and other governments, also known as the public sector, have experienced significant generational brain drain as tenured boomer generation employees retire. Heightened competition for talent from the private sector and budgetary constraints have made it increasingly difficult to attract replacements for these retirees.
As with other human migration, the social environment is considered to be a key reason for this population shift. In some countries, lack of opportunities, political instability or oppression, 5
economic depression, health risks and more contribute to brain drain, whereas host countries usually offer rich opportunities, political stability and freedom, a developed economy and better living conditions that attract talent. At the individual level, family influences (relatives living overseas, for example), as well as personal preferences, career ambitions and other motivating factors can be considered.
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Chapter 3:- CAUSES OF BRAIN DRAIN
3.1. INTRODUCTION:
While many people believe that immigration is a personal choice that must be understood and respected, others look at the phenomenon from a different perspective. What makes those educated people leave their countries should be seriously considered and a distinction between push and pull factors must be made. The push factors include low wages and lack of satisfactory working and living conditions. Social unrest, political conflicts and wars may also be determining causes. The pull factors, however, include intellectua l freedom and substantial funds for research.
There are many factors which cause brain drain from the less developing countries to the highly developed countries. The regional, national and global flow of migrates are increasing every second. There are two main factors due to which people move from one place to another place. There are some major routes of human migration before 1950s but highlighted in 60s.
The reasons can be different region to region; i.e. satisfactory facilities of goods and services, the reconnection of diverse cultural groups, in the time of conflict and war, political instability, health risks and the lack of opportunities. The mobility of intellectuals and skilled personals or emigrants from the country of origin referred to as the PUSH FACTORS of their capital flight. And there are many parallel and inverse reasons for the immigrants called PULL FACTORS to attract towards host countries.
Causes of Brain Drain could be varied. Few of them are discussed below –
Substandard living conditions, dearth of conveyance, accommodation : In certain
countries having high populations, people often face problems of sub standard living conditions, local transports are overcrowded and accommodation becomes a problem.
7
Under-utilization of skilled and semi- skilled personnel : Lack of adequate working
conditions; low panorama of specialized development: Every year thousands of fresh graduates are added to the working force, even though the amount of jobs available are not in proportion. This leads to the under utilization of skilled and semi skilled people. Example- Engineers working as typists etc. Underemployment refers to an employment situation that is insufficient in some important way for the worker, relative to a standard. Examples include holding a part-time job despite desiring full-time work, and over qualification, where the employee has education, experience, or skills beyond the requirements of the job.
Low and corroding wages : The wage rates offered in many countries are not as per the
work done by labourers. They are often cheated by employers. This causes prospective employees to look at job opportunities abroard itself so that they can lead a better lives and improve their standard and quality of living.
Discrimination in recruitments and promotions: There exists a lot of partiality and
discriminations in organizations. This discrimination is based on gender, caste, religion, culture etc. In most cases references and bribes are used to place people on high posts rather than considering meritous candidates. Appreciation & rewards on governmental level and transparency in recruitments help the country as if helps the citizens to have faith in their governments. It is important to avoid discrimination during the recruitment process. This not only is a legal requirement, but also gives you the best chance of getting the right person for the job.
Social unrest, Political instability, conflicts and wars: In warstruck areas and countries
that are politically unstable people live in a constant fear of the next minute. They prefer moving to peaceful places even if that means that they have to leave their state or country behind. Political stability & foreigner secured policies are the pull factors for brain drain.
Lack of research facilities, including support staff; meagerness of research funds, lack of professional apparatus and tools: Many a times resources are unavailable to carry out
research and development. This hampers new developments and advances. Extensive 8
resources for research, unconventional and advanced technology, modern facilities of laboratory equipment; availability of experienced support workforce draws people towards developed countries.
Lack of freedom and autonomy: Lack of freedom to practice occupation is also seek as a
bottleneck. Political freedom is a central concept in history and political thought and one of the most important features of democratic societies. It was described as free of oppression or coercion; the absence of disabling conditions for an individual and the fulfillment of enabling conditions or the absence of life conditions of compulsion, e.g. economic compulsion, in a society.
Although political freedom is often interpreted negatively as the freedom from unreasonable external constraints on action, it can also refer to the positive exercise of rights, capacities and possibilities for action, and the exercise of social or group rights. The concept can also include freedom from "internal" constraints on political action or speech (e.g. social conformity, consistency, or "inauthentic" behaviour.) The concept of political freedom is closely connected with the concepts ofcivil liberties and human rights, which in democratic societies are usually afforded legal protection from the state.
Deteriorating excellence of educational system: The education systems in countries
consists of age old theories and practices. Instead of this, the young generation should be thought how to question and they should also receive practical experiences in order to enhance their learning. However it doesn’t happen in many countries.
Sophisticated standard of living: A standard of living is the level of wealth, comfort,
material goods and necessities available to a certain socioeconomic class in a certain geographic area. The standard of living includes factors such as income, quality and availability of employment, class disparity, poverty rate, quality and affordability of housing, hours of work required to purchase necessities, gross domestic product, inflation rate, number of vacation days per year, affordable (or free) access to quality healthcare, quality and availability of education, life expectancy, incidence of disease, cost of goods and services, infrastructure, national economic growth, economic and political stability, political 9
and religious freedom, environmental quality, climate and safety. The standard of living is closely related to quality of life. The pull of having a sophisticated lifestyle often draws youth towards developed countries.
Employment opportunity: Some countries have ample of employment opportunities due to
a large amount of startups and government jobs. This generates income which in turn improves the standard of living. Employment and occupation opportunities with the proficient development. Working conditions is also an important factor when it comes to work. Employees spend most of their waking hours at work so they should be provided with basic facilities and provisions.
Besides the Working population, Academic intellectuals also leave their Country of Origin due to the following reasons:
Challenging socio-economic conditions – poverty, unemployment, epidemics diseases, increased rate of crime, corruption, etc cause many of the deserving students to lose the right to education. Poverty causes docial evils in the country and this leads to crimes and other cases. In order to give their children a better future parents often send their children abroad.
Poor libraries, ICT & apparatus for research – The infrastructure, Libraries , Information and communication technology are not developed as compared to the developed countries. Such facilities facilitate the youth to get deeper knowledge and understanding. When a country cant provide these benefits they turn to countries that have su
Lack of autonomy academic freedom to create literature at universities
Political instability and harassment, human rights manipulations, wars
Lack of pure democracy – Equal opportunities for all and right to education and freedom of speech are only on papers. Nothing is practically implemented.
Deprived payments for intellectuals and skilled personals
Lack of self-determination and social equivalence
Lack of quality education for children
Lack of career opportunities
Lack of entrepreneurial investments 10
Why Students go abroad:
Poor worth of national education from the Montessori level to post graduation level
Unavailability of scholarships or financial assistance for the brilliant
Miserable infrastructure of schools, colleges and universities
Limited opportunities for higher studies students
As a decided step towards emigration, they suffered with inferiority complex, due to all the above reasons and many more pushing factors resulted to leave their point of origin.
Why Students Do Not Return:
Limited employment opportunities restrict to come back in the homeland
Especially at PhD level, Course or research work not relevant to home country's state of affairs
Convenience of grants for further exploration
Living conditions, insufficient earning and job satisfaction in developed world
Need to send money home and support the family
Getting married to a host country's citizen to get the citizenship
Although, they suffered with many crisis as alienated in the host country including the identity crisis, diaspora and make up their own imagined communities to prevent themselves with the socio-political and religious disparities.
Brain drain has negative impact on the sending countries economic prospects and competitiveness. It reduces the number of dynamic and creative people who can contribute to the development of their country. Likewise, with more entrepreneurs taking their investments abroad, developing countries are missing an opportunity of wealth creation. This has also negative consequences on tax revenue and employment.
Most of the measures taken so far have not had any success in alleviating the effects of brain drain. A more global view must take into consideration the provision of adequate working and living 11
conditions in the sending countries. An other option should involve encouraging the expatriates to contribute their skill to the development of their countries without necessarily physically relocating.
According to a definition, "Brain Drain", academically also known as the "human capital flight" is the large scale migration of highly educated, skilled and talented people of less economically advanced countries to highly rich and developed countries of the world due to conflicted issues, political instability and lack of opportunities in the developing countries.
Globally, relocation of intellectuals is as old as mankind. This terminology of Brain Drain originated in 1960, when most of the intellectuals like scientists and engineers who were the real assets or the future of any country, emigrated from United Kingdom to America.
The unsolved issue of Brain Drain is happening all over the world for the sake of better working conditions
As we can see from the above effects of Brian Drain, The causes could be Pull factors and Push Factors. Brain Drain can have positive as well as negative effects.
3.2. EFFECTS OF BRAIN DRAIN:
Negative effects:
The phenomena of brain drain has left harmful effects in the region of poor countries like Africa, because of their great hope, talents and skills have immigrated to the richer countries. As seen pragmatically, develop and rich countries become richer and more developed and poor and developing countries become poorest and failure states. Consequently, some of the outcomes have produced the poorer rates of growth and development, highly instable politically some are in the condition of cold war like Pakistan …..fewer productive 12
educational funds, and worse health care system and Loss of potential modernizers who might have paved the way to rejuvenation and up gradation through their advanced and creat ive abilities. When brain drain is prevalent in a developing country, there may be some negative repercussions that can affect the economy. These effects include but are not limited to: of tax revenue – As people migrate, it leads to lesser revenues through professional
Loss
taxes, and other taxes. Young workers aged 25-60 make the biggest contribution to a nations finances because they pay income tax, but don’t receive pensions o r education spending.
of potential future entrepreneurs – Entrepreneurs are people that help generate
Loss
employment. Losing these variety of people leads to denial to jobs to many people.
A
shortage of important, skilled workers – Skilled workers are an asset to a country. As
these workers are drained outside the country.
Loss
of innovative ideas
Loss
of the country's investment in education
The
loss of critical health and education services
Brain drain is usually described as a problem that needs to be solved. However, there are benefits that can be derived from the phenomena. When people move from LDC countries to developed countries, they learn new skills and expertise, which they can utilize to the advantage of the home economy once they return. Another benefit is remittances; the migrants send the money they earn back to the home country, which can help to stimulate the home country's economy.
The movement of intellectuals like University lecturers and researchers from one national setting to another, ranging from permanent relocation to short-term visits or exchange programs, facilitates the dissemination of knowledge and the broadening of cultural horizons. However, when one nation becomes a substantial net exporter of academic talent, a "brain drain" condition is said to occur. The
13
presence of this condition suggests that the provider nation is at risk of depleting its natural supply of intellectual talent.
Education seems to play a key role influencing rural-urban migration in the developing countries. Numbers of studies of migration in many countries have documented the positive relationship between the educational accomplishment of an individual and his or her interest to migrate from rural to urban areas. Education also plays a big role in the growing problems of international migration of high level educated individuals from poor countries to the rich ones causing the so called Brain Drain to the poor countries. Scientists, eingineers, academics and physicians who have been trained with scarcely available resources at social cost in their home countries for the benefits and growth of their nation. However, this has simply left helplessness to the concerned institutions and countries of the south that have been loosing thousands of their highly educated workers for the benefits of the rich countries and individuals themselves.
International Emigrants can be roughly divided into 3 major categories.
Emigrants due to lack of employment and low salaries, and thus people are tempted to look for better salaries elsewhere - here, we talk about Economic factors.
The second cause of migration is political instability in home countries, thus they loose confidence to their governments and future prospects for a better life. These are individuals who may have difficulties because of their ethinic, cultural, religional belongings or being a member of opposition political groupings in their home countries, - Migration taking place in response to wars, and political and social turmoil.
Many scholars who have been sent abroad for further studies or who are once out in one wayor another, remain abroad leaving their family and workplace behind with the hope that a better life can be achieved elsewhere, despite their well being at home. Expectations are usually not met as hopped; thus, obliged to seek asylum which deteriorates their lives and becomes `ashamed` of themselves to return home empty handed - Immigration flow due to lack of information and misguidance. As some statistics indicate concerning the current intelectual migration, it is Africa that suffers most from this `unfortunate phenomena´. In 1998 an estimated 700 Ghanaian physicians are said to have been practicing in the USA alone, which makes a considerable percentage of the population of doctors in the country. It is estimated that about 20,000 Nigerian academics are now employed in USA alone and more than 300 Ethiopian physicians are working in Chicago, USA alone. Here, one can emagine how much it means in the whole of the United States. According to research reports 14
prsented on an international conference concerning the issue of Brain Drain, Africa generally looses over 20,000 intelectuals yearly. This is undoubtfully one of the main constraints of under development in the continent.
A new report, brodcasted by the British Broadcasting Corportaion (BBC) says Africa has lost a third of its skilled professionals in recent decades and it is costing the continent $4 billion dollars a year to replace them with expatriates from the West. Where as rich countries like the United States of America have saved a total sum of $26 billion dollars which otherwise should have spent to train 130,000 highly qualified physicians. The consequence is especially worse for those countries like Ethiopia. This already poor and `unfortunate`country has been loosing its meagre professionals continuously since the previous regimes. Ethiopia has a long history of external provocation and internal conflict that has been driving out its limited medical doctors in particular and other professionals in general. The statistical estimates for Ethiopia indicate that about 50 percent of the Ethiopians who went abroad for training and further education have not returned home for the past two decades after completing their studies in the West.
Thousands of them have been trained in home institutions with considerable social cost and debt from the richest nations. In the past 10 years i.e. between 1980-90, a total of less than 6.000 students have returned from studies abroad out of nearly 23,000 students who left for Europe and the United States in that same period of time. These are either tempted by significantly higher wages and better future prospects or give the blame to the political situation, which they say is a threat even for their lives. In most cases the later is likely to be the main reason what makes Ethiopians on their way out from the country. South Africa and Nigeria seem to have the bigest portion in loosing their professionals from Africa, which consume professionals from other African States on their part.
If African Schools and higher institutions should remain in takt, then the continent should substitute with qualified professionals from other countries that indeed leaves the continent poorer, and holds back development. Universities are obliged to hire inexperienced graduates who may likely be also in the pipeline to following the footsteps of their highly educated and skilled comrades - a vicious cycle!
Curving the brain drain - Brain Drain - from the poor to rich countries, is an international issue but how to get rid of it or at least keep it as minimal as possible is not an easy task, therefore, it should concern African governments more than anytime ever. Ancient migration history reminds us that not 15
all forms of economic interaction among different societies are necessarily beneficial. Globalization by itself is a modern way of movements of people (whether skilled or not), goods, services, technologies, and physical and financial assets from one coutry or continent to another which every body is said to be benefiting from. However, the movements of people we are talking of, is unbalanced and unjustified movement of educated and skilled individuals that usually takes place from one continent i.e. Africa to the rest of the world.
Positive Effects of Barin Drain
Right now, there are 215m people — almost 3% of the world’s population — living outside of their country of origin. Among these emigrants are many well educated and trained professionals. The outflow of skilled people from a particular country or region to another is called brain drain.
Its occurrence depends on a variety of factors, but broadly speaking, the term describes people trying to improve their living conditions by leaving their homes to find better prospects elsewhere. This is especially true for developing countries, where many qualified people are attracted by better opportunities wealthier countries have to offer, but brain drain also occurs in other areas of the world.
Exodus of skills and knowledge. Critics say that it is yet another way that developed countries take advantage of difficult conditions in some parts of the world; by luring away people who could otherwise be of big use in their home countries. If the number of skilled people leaving is higher than that of people entering (the so-called brain gain), brain drain can become a challenge, especially if it hits the sensitive spots of a nation’s economy in sectors such as science, health care, or technology.
Malawi, for example, faced a serious crisis in the medical sector when a huge number of trained staff left the country because of better opportunities elsewhere. In 2005 the UN’s Global Commission on International Migration stated that there were actually more Malawian doctors working in Manchester than in all of Malawi. There have also been huge outflows of nurses to developed countries such as the UK. This is not surprising, considering the fact that they could earn up to ten times the salary they would have earned at home. Additionally, there are all the benefits 16
that come along with living in a wealthy and stable country. However, with its already precarious health care situation and with more than 10% of its population suffering from HIV/AIDS, this exodus poses a serious challenge for Malawi.
Brain drain is not only a threat to developing countries though. In developed countries, the loss of skilled people does not only mean a poor economic investment in their education, but also the loss of large amounts of tax those high achievers would have paid during their professional career. Positive side effects. There is more than one side to the brain drain phenomenon though. First, expatriates are a vital source of income for many countries. According to the World Bank, remittances received by developing countries totaled up to US $325bn in 2010, more than doubling the US $129bn of aid raised by the OECD countries in the same year. In many cases, money sent home by expatriates contributes hugely to the GDP. Tajikistan is leading this statistic with more than a third of its GDP coming from remittances. On top of that, this private development aid seems to be a comparatively stable source of income. When foreign investments dropped significantly due to the global economic crisis in 2009, remittances remained relatively stable, only dropping by 5.5% and recovering again in 2010.
Another possibly positive aspect of global migration and the movement of skilled people is the socalled brain circulation. According to this concept, migration makes a vivid exchange of knowledge and ideas possible, which is beneficial for everyone contributing. Considering all the complex facts, there is no easy answer for how to judge the brain drain phenomenon. Its influence seems to depend on a variety of factors that are not the same in all parts of the world. Keeping an eye on migration and its effects will be of major importance in the age of globalization.
3.3. BRAIN DRAIN IN INDIA:
Brain Drain is “the movement of highly skilled and qualified people to a country where they can work in better conditions and earn more money”.
A brain drain is usually regarded as an economic cost, since emigrants usually take with them the value of their higher education and training sponsored by the Government. The Government of India estimated that there are 30 million Indian human resources who are working for the developed countries are highly educated and skilled. This paper mainly focuses on socio-economic aspects of 17
brain drain in Indian scenario. Also the concern raised in this paper is that the valuable human capital in high end professional institutions like IIT's, AIIMS and IIM's are generated with the money collected from the tax payers but it is very unfortunate that these professionals and skilled human resource are permitted to work for the development of developed countries. India is a developing country and it is becoming a major supplier of human capital for the advanced economies. Brain drain may have meager positive impact on our economy in the short run but being a developing country, India cannot afford exodus of highly valued professionals and there is need to review our long term higher education strategy in this regard.
Brain Drain refers the situation when highly qualified and trained people leave a country to permanently settle in some other country. It is also referred to as Human capital flight. Highly educated professional people immigrate to other advanced countries for better opportunities and a comfortable life style.
The problem of Brain-drain, in our age, has become very elusive. The developing countries like India are desperately in need of talents, especially in the field of science and technology but for one reason or the other the talents and fleeing their countries, leaving their native lands impoverished in the process.
Brain Drain is an extremely serious problem for developing countries. The destiny of such countries lies in the solution to this great problem. India can be taken as an instance in point. After independence this country is engaged in difficult struggle against poverty. But struggles cannot be launched in papers; they require armies of trained personnel – the scientists, technical knowhow and specialists in the field of planned development. If instead of contributing to the prosperity of India, the Indian scientists, research scholars, engineers, doctors and economists immigrate to other countries, it is difficult to see how India can implement her development plans and attain her goal of prosperity.
professionals is towards the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and many other similar destinations. In 2010, India with an estimated stock of 11.4 million emigrants was the second emigration country in the world, behind Mexico (11.9 million). An important place in the flows of well-trained Indian migrants is taken by Indian students. India, for example, accounts for 5.5% of 18
the 2.8 million students studying outside their home-country. After China (421,100), the country sends the greatest number of students abroad 153,300. The ex-prime minister of India, Shri. Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s address to the Global Organisation of Persons of Indian Origin (GOPIO) a t New
Delhi in January, 2001 reflects the perception of the Indian polity towards the highly qualified and experienced emigrants of India settled abroad. Expressing the pride of the Indian nation on the legendary success stories of Indian entrepreneurs abr oad, he is reported to have said “from hi -tech chip laboratories to curry restaurants, from renowned hospitals to famous educational institutions, from well known research centre to leading think-tanks everywhere you find an Indian who has overcome all odds to establish himself through skilled education and hard work”
Over the years, India has become a major supplier of skilled and talented young people to the Western countries, particularly European Union. The major destinations for Indians in the EU in the beginning of the century were limited to UK, Germany, Italy, Austria and Spain. But, now, more and more Indians are immigrating to the countries like Poland, France, Ireland and Sweden. A good number of these immigrants reach the host countries as students.
While 5,615 permits issued by the UK for Indians were for highly skilled workers, Italy issued 3,479 permits for Indian seasonal workers. These highly skilled migrants and seasonal workers become permanent residents of the host countries as the long term socio-economic benefits lure them.
In ancient times the scholars of one country visited neighboring countries, and they often stayed there for years, both learning and teaching. The great scholars of China and Persia and other scholars from the West visited India during her prosperous days in the past and wrote memoirs which are precious materials for Indian history. But these were not considered brain drain then. For when Hiuen Tsan came to India or Shilbhadra visited Tibet, staying there for many years, their absence from their own countries did not make much difference. On the contrary, their experiences and wisdom gained from their visits enriched their countries. Such exchanges benefited the countries in those days and built a bridge of understanding and amity when communication between even the neighbors was not easy.
In the under-developed countries like India, the ambitious and highly educated people found it very 19
difficult to climb the peak, for the obstacles were many and the bureaucratic bungling was irritating. Hence, the alarming exodus started in the fifties and in the seventies the brain-drain appeared to be complete.
Over the years, India has become a major supplier of skilled and talented young people to the Western countries, particularly European Union. The major destinations for Indians in the EU in the beginning of the century were limited to UK, Germany, Italy, Austria and Spain. But, now, more and more Indians are immigrating to the countries like Poland, France, Ireland and Sweden. A good number of these immigrants reach the host countries as students.
While 5,615 permits issued by the UK for Indians were for highly skilled workers, Italy issued 3,479 permits for Indian seasonal workers. These highly skilled migrants and seasonal workers become permanent residents of the host countries as the long term socio-economic benefits lure them.
Comparison between first residence permits issued to Indians and total number of issues in EU in 2009 and 2010 Indians 2009 Highly
Skilled 11,784
Total EU 2010
2009
2010
12,852
39,027
40,786
Workers Researchers
658
724
6,228
7,172
Seasonal Workers
4,163
3,783
56,518
114,311
Economic 47,844
56,488
546,749
645,493
64,449
73,847
648,522
807,744
Other Reasons Total Permits
Source: Population Database – Eurostat
The increasing trend of brain drain of the skilled workers finally persuaded the government to take action. After witnessing a huge brain drain of doctors (among the 3,000 medical students went 20
abroad in last three years, none r eturned), the health ministry has suspended issuing “no obligation to
return
certificates”
to
the
medical
students
going
abroad
for
higher
studies.
Classification of Brain Migration:
In a wider perspective than brain drain only, brain migration may be of the following types – 1. Brain Overflow 2. Brain Export 3. Brain Exchange 4. Brain Drain In Indian context Brain Overflow and Brain Drain are relevant terms. Brain Exchange are significant for developed countries. With latest data, as 60% of the Indian population is young (i.e. below 35) and Brain Overflow is very much applicable presently. Several of Engineers, Doctors, Scientists are coming out of Indian Universities every year with a vague future prospective of their employment in India. The problem of Brain Overflow usually leads to the problem of Brain Drain. However, brain drain may have many other reasons, for example- Political instability of a nation, lack of opportunities, health risks, personal conflicts etc. The term brain-drain was introduced by observing the emigration of the various technologists, doctors and scientists, from various developing countries to more developed nations like USA, UK, Germany, England etc. Now this phenomenon of brain drain has a conversed effect for a country in which people are getting migrated and Brain-drain of a nation becomes Brain-gain for that particular country. Usually all developing countries including India are suffering from brain drain and developed countries like USA are having brain gain from this phenomenon. More or less, all the backward countries are suffering from this problem. India is also one of the major nations in the world which is suffering from this brain drain seriously at the present moment. The brain drain is a direct loss, of trained experts in many fields, to the under-developed and poor countries. On the other hand, it is a net gain to the advanced countries. According to a UNO report, every year thousands of experts are migrating from backward countries to advanced countries like USA, UK, Canada, Germany etc. The under-developed countries are spending millions of rupees on the training of these experts. But the advanced countries are utilizing their services without spending any money on their training. In 2010, India with an estimated stock of 11.4 million emigrants was the second emigration country in the world, behind Mexico (11.9 million). In absolute terms, India is among the countries which lose most highly-skilled workers to foreign markets.
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There are many reasons for migrating from one country to other country i.e. Lack of support to expert or highly educated people in terms of financial support and resources and support from government, these reasons are making Indian experts to leave India and render the services to other countries. The steady outflow of our nation's talent, especially those educated, at the cost of the tax payers‟ money, has caused concern to the government. Due to high salary and facilities Indian
youth is moving abroad. One reason as to why the developed countries prosper is because of the high intellectual migrants from the poor developing countries. This knowledge gap is increasing and the poor countries are becoming poorer and rich countries are emerging as knowledge countries and they are ruling the world.
3.2.1. CAUSES OF BRAIN DRAIN IN INDIA:
There are various reasons for the brain drain in India. The reasons usually include two aspects which respectively come from countries and individuals. In terms of countries, the reasons may be social environment. In terms of individual reasons, there are family influence, and personal preference: preference for exploring, ambition for an improved career, etc. Keeping all these in mind we can identify some causes for the brain drain in India.
Higher Education : Higher education in India evolved considerably after independence in
terms of the number of universities as well as in terms of access to higher education. Nowadays, the number of universities in India has grown some 35 times comparing to 500 colleges and 20 universities before independence which are enrolling more than 11 million students, more than 10 times before independence. Before independence education was limited and elitist: the current system is though more open with from 30- 40% of enrolments from coming from the lower castes, and with women representing some 35% of the total number of students. The impressive increase in higher education has raised some questions over the adequacy of studies, resources, institutional quality and standards. Students moving to the abroad is keep increasing. The most preferred educational destinations are the U.S. and U.K. In the year 2006, of the 1,23,000 studying outside India, 76,000 have chosen USA (94,563 in 2007-2008, 83,833 in 2006-2007) as a country of their choice followed by UK, Canada and Australia. Most popular foreign universities are University of Southern California, New York University, Columbia 22
University, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Purdue University, Indiana, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, University of California, Los Angeles, University of Texas, Austin, Harvard University, Boston University, University of Pennsylvania. In the recent years, the cut-offs for admissions became close to 100% in the best Indian universities. While the institutes are in the race of getting the best students in the country, the ambitious youth who fail to meet the “irrational” demands had to compromise on their
dream of occupying a seat in any of the prestigious Indian universities. This leads them to explore the scope of higher education abroad. Most of the students who try their luck in higher studies abroad get into good universities as they have an edge over the students from other countries in terms of skills and knowledge.
While this is the case of young students, the academically well qualified people prefer going abroad for higher research because they don’t get the best chances, resources and facilities
for research in India. A recent study conducted by Indian Institute of ManagementBangalore (IIM-B) shows that the students going for higher studies abroad has increased by 256% in the last 10 years. When 53,000 Indian students went abroad for higher studies in 2000, the figure shot up to 1.9 lakh in 2010.
The US is the most sought after destination for the students, followed by the United Kingdom. There are many Indian students exploring study opportunities in countries in Australia, Germany and France.
Country
Students going abroad (per year)
China
421,000
India
153,300
Republic of Korea
105,300
Germany
77,500
Japan
54,500
Source: UNESCO’s Report - Global Education Digest
A report by Associated Chamber of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) pointed out that when a large number of students flocking to foreign universities, it costs India a whooping Rs. 95,000 crores per year. 23
The report further noted that there is a huge difference in the fees paid by the students studying in the premier institutes in India as compared to the students who study aboard. While an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) student has to pay an average fee of $150 per month, the fee paid by an Indian student studying abroad per month is anywhere between $1,500 and $4,000. Still, it is a matter of concern that despite the highly subsidized rate of higher education, especially in engineering and management, India fails miserably in attracting the best brains.
Employment: - India has skilled and semi-skilled, employed and unemployed human
resource. Low salaries and inefficient working conditions can be the first motive that triggers the movement to the countries with better living standards and facilities. There is huge difference in terms of salary in all three groups of countries namely developed, developing and underdeveloped. To demonstrate, Skilled workers aim to get pleasing salaries in return for their labour but the working conditions in their homeland don't fulfill their wishes. Therefore, those workers prefer to move another country in order to have better living conditions with high salaries. Employment is one of the strong reason for brain drain in India.
Lack of opportunities: In developed countries, researchers are provided with funds and
necessary equipment to carry out study, which can be another motive that attracts those deprived of these opportunities. Most scientists in underdeveloped countries, do not possess laboratory facilities and researchers cannot get sufficient funds. Therefore, when developed countries offer these facilities, researchers and scientists naturally prefer to migrate to these countries. The internationalization of knowledge creation and the rapid expansion of R&D activities determined the diversification of receiving countries for professionals and skilled workers from India. Traditional migration streams of highly-skilled Indian were directed toward the United States and the UK. In the 2000s, new non-English-speaking destinations emerged in Europe such as Italy, France, Germany and other European countries. The number of skilled Indian migrants moving to Australia, Canada, and New Zealand also increased.
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Favorable migration policies: - Increasing economic interdependence among nations,
growing demand for skilled labour in the knowledge economy not to mention demographic trends are all strengthening the position of India as a major supplier of young, educated and qualified manpower for the EU. Owing to its demographic profile and its English-speaking population, India, with its large reserves of highly-skilled workers, has emerged as one of the most prominent country to fill the supply gaps in the labour-deficient economies of the developed world. Taking into account EU economic objectives coupled with demographic and ageing effects, Member States have put in place selective immigration policies aimed at attracting highly-skilled professionals and tertiary-level international students from South Asia. In order to facilitate labour mobility, some EU countries signed labour-mobility partnerships with India. According to the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, this kind of agreements was signed with Denmark, and negotiations are ongoing with other European countries, EU and non EU, including Poland, the Czech Republic, Norway, Switzerland and Hungary, Sweden and France. There are so many causes of the brain drain in India. First of all, there is the unemployment problem. Even a talented person cannot get job. India is lacking in facilities for higher research work. The top appointments are quite few in India. Thus the talented experts like to seek new pastures abroad.
3.2.2. SOCIO- ECONOMIC ASPECTS OF BRAIN DRAIN IN INDIA:
(i) As a Political Problem
When the best of professional manpower leave their home country and settle in a more developed one, it is a political phenomenon, but it only rarely occurs that the motives are exclusively political. It involves peculiar contradiction; it simultaneously indicates the lack of production and over production of professional manpower on the drained country. In this sense, brain drain is a symptomatic phenomenon, but at the same time it is expressive of a fundamental difficulty. The net effect of this is that the development of science and technology has been accelerated in the developed countries and has been slowed down in the drained countries.
(ii) As an Economic Problem
The economic aspect of brain drain derives from disproportionate economic, technological and scientific development of the developed and the developing countries. It is characteristic of brain 25
drain that the more underdeveloped a country is economically, the more it loses by brain drain while only developed countries profit from the process. The outflow of our nation's talent, especially those highly skilled, educated from our premier institutes like IIT's and IIM's, AIIMS and other R & D institutes at the cost of the "Tax payers" money (in billions) raised a big question mark on the future prospects of Indian infrastructure development and various undergoing research works. Due to high salary and facilities, Indian youth is moving abroad. It is clear from the above fact that why the developed countries prosper at fast pace because of the high intellectual migrants from the poor developing countries. This knowledge gap is increasing and the poor countries are becoming poorer and rich countries are emerging as knowledge countries and they are ruling the world.
(iii) As a Social problem
Firstly, the main social problem associated with migration may have impacts on national identity. The trend over time, such as one can be discriminated is inherent in ethno-cultural fixtures. Secondly, migration may have impacts on integration, defined as group outcomes set against the societal average. Put differently, this about understands the trajectories of first (and second) generation immigrant performance in a range of economic and social spheres (employment, housing, health, social interaction, marriage and so on). Finally, migration may have impacts on cohesion. This refers to how migration affects neighborhoods, and is defined by people’s
perceptions of how people get along with each other in their local area or neighborhood.
India – the brain reservoir in the new knowledge based economy - The growth in
knowledge intensive activities in the developed world has led to a growing demand for Science and Engineering professionals. With an important reserve of trained people in this domain, India is becoming a major supplier of human capital for the advanced economies. India is sending large numbers of these specialists compared to other important origin countries. A relevant example is the number of Indian students in science and engineering enrolled in US undergraduate degree programs. India, China, and South Korea are the top countries of origin for foreign students in the United States in science and engineering: India with 68,000 students in 2009 accounts for the largest number of foreign students here, followed by China with 54 000 students. Together these countries account for almost 47% of all foreign science and engineering student enrolled in U.S universities9. Germany is also recruiting foreign students from India, notably in engineering and computer sciences. The United States remain the most important 26
host country of highly-skilled Indian migrants with more than 80% of Indian skilled migration to all developed countries. In the host countries, Indian migrants are among the besteducated and highest-ear ning groups. The US Census Bureau‟s 2008 American Community Survey found that 74.1% of an estimated stock of 1.6 million of Indian immigrants held at least a bachelor's degree, and 68.9% were hired in management, professional, and related positions. According to the US Government Accountability Office (GAO), 46.9% of highly-skilled workers admitted under the H-1B visa between fiscal year 2000 and fiscal year 2009 were born in India10. In 2004, the US was the favored destination of 62% of the 71,290 physicians emigrating from India while 32% chose the UK (Bhargava, Docquier, and Moullan, 2010). In the European Union, the UK is the first destination of highlyskilled Indian migrants attracting two thirds of the total number of Indian migrants in Western Europe (Khadria, 2008). Indians also represented more than 40% of the estimated 22,000 entries under the UK‟s Highly-Skilled Migrant Program.
Indian students: an important source of labour for developed economies - An important
place in the flows of well-trained Indian migrants is taken by Indian students. India, for example, accounts for 5.5% of the 2.8 million students studying outside their home-country. After China (421,100), the country sends the greatest number of students abroad: 153,300. In 2009, the EU-27 hosted 1.6 million foreign students in tertiary education.13 53,930 were Indian citizens. The first destination was the UK (42,406) followed by Germany (3,629), Cyprus (1,588) and France (1,252)14. According to the table below, in 2009, India was behind only China in sending students in the EU-27. The other two main countries of origin were Morocco with 44,800 students and the United States with 32,100 students. Nigeria and Brazil, the two nonAsian big demographic pools send only, respectively half and one third of India‟s numbers.
Increase in the immigration of Indian migrants to the European Union (EU) due to favorable policies - Over the last few years, the European Union has been seeking to put in
place measures which comprise effective integration policies addressing education and labour market issues. This is proven by the number of Indian immigrants who acquired European Union citizenship. In 2006, 20,600 (2.8%) of 735,000 citizens granted by the European countries were Indians. 27
India a supplier of young and well trained-people for European countries - Increasing
economic interdependence among nations, growing demand for skilled labour in the knowledge economy not to mention demographic trends are all strengthening the position of India as a major supplier of young, educated and qualified manpower for the EU. Owing to its demographic profile and its English-speaking population, India, with its large reserves of highly-skilled workers, has emerged as one of the most prominent country to fill the supply gaps in the labour-deficient economies of the developed world. Taking into account EU economic objectives coupled with demographic and ageing effects, Member States have put in place selective immigration policies aimed at attracting highly-skilled professionals and tertiary-level international students from South Asia. Through the European Blue Card, following the principles of the American Green Card, the EU intends to attract 20 million well-trained workers in the next 20 years (Sawahel 2007, Khadria, 2008b).Moreover, negotiations in early 2012 over the free-trade agreement launched in 2007 between the EU and India could reinforce the immigration of highly-skilled Indians to the EU, which will mean easier access for Indian workers to EU countries in return for access to India's domestic market. With a large and growing population of 1.15 billion, India will be a major player in international migration. According to the Indian Office of the Registrar General & Census commissioner, the population of India is expected to increase to 1.4 billion in 2026 overtaking China at that point. Population growth in India is set to continue and large numbers of young people will enter the labor force age group of those aged 15 to 64. By 2020, India will become the world‟s largest pool of young people estimated at 820 million as compared to the present number of 400 million 20. Moreover, 3.5 million graduates and postgraduates are added annually to the talent base. No other country offers a similar combination and scale of human resources (NASSCOM) Evolution of Indian migrant stock in the main European destinations in 2009 compared to 2010.
3.2.3. EFFECTS OF BRAIN DRAIN IN INDIA:
Brain Drain is a direct loss, of trained experts in many fields, to the under-developed and poor countries. On the other hand, it is a net gain to the advanced countries. According to a UNO report, every year thousands of experts are migrating from backward countries 28
to advanced countries like USA, UK, Canada, Germany etc. The under-developed countries are spending millions of rupees on the training of these experts. But the advanced countries are utilizing their services without spending any money on their training. Every year, thousands of highly talented doctors, engineers, scientists and other intellectuals leave India and migrate to foreign countries. They generally go to U.S.A, UK, Canada, West Germany, etc for monetary gains and facilities for higher research. US is the biggest gainer from the loss of India due to brain drain. In 2010, India with an estimated stock of 11.4 million emigrants was the second emigration country in the world, behind Mexico (11.9 million)1. In absolute terms, India is among the countries which lose most highly-skilled workers to foreign markets. In 2000, India was, for example, the first sending country of physicians with 57,383or 9.9% of the total number of physicians trained in the country going abroad. India and the Philippines supply most foreign-trained doctors and nurses to the OECD, notably to English-speaking countries. The emigration of health professionals has negative effects on India, especially in rural areas where the density of doctors is lower than in urban areas. Despite increasing internal demand, India still has a very low density of doctors (0.6 per thousand people in 2004) compared with 3 in the US and 2 in Canada. Compared with other large origin countries, India records higher expatriation rate of doctors: 8%; while the expatriation rate of, say, Chinese doctors is about 1%. This does not prevent, of course, India from having a large and powerful modern health sector; as in other countries, the migration of health professionals may coexist with a dynamic urban sector and the inequitable social distribution of medical resources at the country level. Most of the students who go abroad for higher studies do not return to India. After seeing, the affluent life of foreign countries they lose all interest in their own country. Many Indians are teaching at various US Universities and other Institutions of higher learning. Some of them are placed on quite lucrative and high posts. There is another attraction of leading a higher standard of living in foreign countries, because the technical experts and intellectuals, are give special facilities there. In foreign countries, there is the advantage that while learning a person can also earn his own living. The stipends in foreign countries are sufficient enough. A frugal Indian Student living there can also save something to send home.
There is no doubt that India is having vast natural and man power resources. If both these resources are put to the maximum utilization astounding advancement can be achieved in all fields. These technical and other talented reasons whom we lose every year, can greatly help in the development 29
of our natural resources. government must take speedy steps to attract back home these talented sons of India who are living abroad. These experts can surely help in making India a great power in the world. In this connection, even the people should also come forward and cooperate with the Government in solving this problem. The parents of the students should not encourage them to go abroad and settle there even if they are paid high salaries. The doctors, engineers and scientists owe a duty to their motherland. Our nation is spending huge amounts of money on their training. These people should not betray their own nation by serving foreign nations. Today thousands of young Indian scientists and technicians are devoted to the cause of rebuilding our nation. The country has already achieved the nuclear status as well as become a space power. There are enough opportunities for all the Indian scientists and engineers settled abroad, if they come back to India. They should play an important role in future progress of our country and share the honour of participating in this sacred task.
3.2.4. MEASURES TO REDUCE BRAIN DRAIN IN INDIA
There are numerous measures which can be taken in order to limit if not completely stop brain drain. As seen in the above text the problems that the citizens face are the only reason due to which they migrate. The use of the following measures will surely curb this problem.
Better Education Facilities – A good base for a child is extremely important. Children
should be educated in such a manner that they learn and grow. Education should be provided through interactive sessions and application based teaching. Vocational skills should be taught so that youth become suitable to take up opportunities once they graduate. Scholarships should be provided to the brilliant children who lose out due to financial crises.
Encourage Self Employment – Self employment activities like Tailoring, cooking, baking,
etc should be promoted along with dignity of work.
Better Working Conditions – In India, employees are not treated well. Since labour is
available in plenty employers afford to dominate them as the workers are dependent on them and not vice versa. This mentality should be changed. More labour laws should be laid down 30
and care should be taken that employees are not ill treated and exploited. Offenders should be punished.
Entrepreneurial Development – The young innovative minds should be provided proper
guidance and opportunities through which they can be entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs help the nation as they generate employment opportunities. Proper funding must be given.
Fair Work Policies – The work policies must be favorable in order to reduce exploitation.
Employment Opportunities – New Graduates are added to the workforce year after year.
The opportunities should also be generated accordingly. This can be done by encouraging new start- ups and ventures. New Opportunities leads to income and better living conditions which in turn improve the standard of living. Stop doing educational and employment-based favours on the basis of caste. There is no bigger hypocrisy than claiming efforts to abolish caste system and issuing caste certificates at the same time. This is a major demotivator for genuinely talented people from the open class who then simply migrate to places where they are valued and respected.
Provide infrastructure -
It does not mean only roads, bridges and buses. Create an
environment of industriousness, conducive to entrepreneurship, research, innovation and transparent administration. Instill work ethics in schooling, and provide decent incentives for top performers in every field of the economy.
Drives like “Make in India” and “Think in India” are stepping stones towards for India's
development.
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Chapter 4:- CONCLUSION
Hundred of talents emigrated to the U.S.A. and Europe which assured them of great opportunities for getting to the top, of secure and comfortable living, of satisfaction and of glory in their respective fields. If the emigrants could have all those assurances they would not think of fleeing their country. But the problem is that a developing country like India could hardly afford to accommodate so many ambitious people, nor could the scope be made broad enough to secure affluence for all. Some of them, after training and experiences in foreign countries, return home with individual drams and when they fail to fit in with the evolving patterns at home, despair drives them away again.
But India needs these professionally trained people, so they should be persuaded to stay in India and be content with less lucrative jobs. When India is rich enough to reward them, they would not find much to complain about. All these people are among the fortunate few, enjoying the privilege of education, while some eighty percent of Indians languish in dark hovels – poor, ignorant and superstitious. It is they duty and responsibility of those privileged few to take them out of the morass, instead of jointing the mad rush for careerism. There may be many obstacles in their way, but their dedicated services and patriotic zeal will help them rise above them and restore to India her lost glory.
Brain drain has become a major concern of the developing countries especially, India. The term, which was emerged in 1960s when the skilled workforce started emigrating from the poor countries to the rich countries in search of better job opportunities and living conditions, became a hot topic of discussion over the years.
When the expatriates are going abroad in search of greener pastures, India has been losing its major skilled workforce that includes doctors, engineers, scientists and technicians. If we analyze the brain drain trends in India, we could find that there are many reasons why the country fails to hold back its talented youth.
Better opportunities abroad- Most of the students prefer staying back in the host country due to 32
better work opportunities and heavy pay packages. After getting good global exposure and getting introduced to the high quality life and facilities, the students become reluctant to go back to the home country.
These days, most of the developed countries act like organizations. When they fail to find good, talented and skilled workers in their country, they attract the highly skilled and qualified people from other countries. It’s very obvious that the skilled Indians prefer US Green Cards and EU Blue
Cards over the not-so-attractive pay checks and average living conditions of a developing country like India.
Here, India is the loser and developed countries like the US and UK are gainers.
Emigrants comprise people educated and trained at different levels. Majority of the emigrants are of low education and unskilled. Emigrants also include highly educated professionals such as doctors, engineers, professors and other technically and professionally trained people. A good number of medical, engineering (including IIT students) and management students from India migrate to countries like USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, France and to some rich gulf countries. These students take the advantage of subsidized education financed by tax payers money and leave the country when they become productive agent or laborers.
Such an emigration creates a scarcity of trained and skilled professionals and workers, if the native countries of the migrants are in need of them. Instead of contributing to the development of their home countries, the emigrants are lured by the personal gain abroad. At times, such migration takes place due to lack of incentives and opportunities in the native country.
According to reports, such a situation took place in England from 1983 – 1985 when many scholars left British university for USA. Similarly Russia experienced such migration to USA during late 1980s and early 1990’s.
It is also argues that educated emigrants help the home countries when these countries are not in a position to employ them. Besides it also reduces the claim on goods and services of the home country when the laborers migrate. 33
Brain Drain has become a global phenomenon. As discussed earlier people migrate to another country for a number of reasons of which economic and political are important ones. It is evident that it has positive and negative effects both on the host country and the native countries. In a globalised world the number of migrants is bound to increase. However, in the larger interests of people and nations involved it is necessary to introduce measures so that the positive effects are maximized and the negative one are minimized if they cannot be completely eliminated. Following are some suggestions in this direction:
Better Employment Opportunities: If a country has opportunities of employment, it gives people hope of a secure future. The make in India initiative is an important step in this direction.
Better Standard of Living: This is directly linked to the above point. If there are ample of employment opportunities, it leads to high income which in turn increases the standard of living in the country.
Better Education: A good education system can help generate a talented pool of working graduates which will develop the country and take it o another level all together.
Economic and Political Stability: Economic and Political factors existing in a country is also a reason why a large number of India’s talented youth move out of the country. An attempt to bring about stability will curb
the figures of brain drain.
Better Working Conditions: India has a history of its workers being treated badly and having bad working conditions. If each individual company takes steps for the welfare of its workers the situation can be improved.
Brain Drain can also be seen a Brain Gain for another country.
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