At a time when India is increasingly flexing its geopolitical muscle, the visit to Kuwait by Prime Minister Narendra Modi served as a valuable reminder of the country’s biggest strategic asset: its people. More than eight million Indians live in the Gulf. From caregivers to construction workers, oil engineers to entrepreneurs, they serve as the region’s first introduction to India. While the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia host the largest populations among that workforce, it is Kuwait that has for long epitomised the dreams and the despair that accompany life in the Gulf for millions of Indians. The country, home to the third-largest chunk of Indians in the Gulf, was the theatre where India carried out its largest-ever evacuation. After Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait, India airlifted more than 170,000 nationals to safety back home. More recently, over 40 Indians were killed in a horrific fire in Kuwait. That incident underscored how, more than three decades after the evacuation, Indian blue-collar workers in the Gulf continue to remain vulnerable.
Mr Modi visited a workers’ camp in Kuwait in addition to his meetings with the leaders of the Gulf nation. But New Delhi needs to do much more. India’s growing and largely stable economy is attractive to investors from the Gulf and its strong relations with most world powers make it a valuable strategic partner for other nations amidst global tumult. Yet it would be a mistake for India’s policymakers to relegate its workers to a talking point or to treat them merely as a cultural bridge that needs acknowledgement. The workers in the Middle East are the driving force that makes India the world’s biggest recipient of remittances. They represent the best of India’s diversity: Hindu, Muslim, Christian and Sikh Indians alike bound by a common passport, colour and identity. With India trying to project itself as a leading supplier of skilled manpower to the world, the Gulf represents a thriving example of how Indians can help build entire nations out of the desert — their stamp visible on every skyscraper and in every hospital in the region. When they face oppressive labour practices, millions of families back in India suffer with them. India must work with its Gulf friends to strengthen protections and rights for its citizens in the region. That, more than the deals struck in Kuwait, should be Mr Modi’s big takeaway from his visit.