Indians in the United Arab Emirates
The UAE has experienced a tremendous increase in the population of resident Indians who initially migrated to the country as a result of opportunities in petroleum.
Now, Indians are key to the UAE's construction, retail, financial services, healthcare, manufacturing and transport sectors.
In 1853, the rulers of the emirates signed a Perpetual Maritime Truce with the British, effectively bringing the region under Britain's sphere of influence.
[7] Businesses in the largest sheikhdoms in the UAE, Dubai and Abu Dhabi continued to use the Indian Rupee even after India's independence in 1947.
It was introduced as a replacement for the Indian rupee for circulation exclusively outside the country, which included apart from the states making up the UAE, the nations of Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Bahrain.
[9] Indian migration to the UAE drastically increased in the 1970s and 1980s, with the expansion of the oil industry and the growth of free trade in Dubai.
The UAE government offers amnesty programs where foreign undocumented workers can voluntarily leave the country without facing imprisonment or having to pay fines.
One such three month amnesty program in 2007 benefited 110,000 illegal Indian migrants, all of whom were either legally reabsorbed into the UAE workforce or were allowed to return to India without sanctions or imprisonment.
[16] Many U.A.E-born Indians further migrate to countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand both for greater economic and lifestyle opportunities, and due to the U.A.E's restrictive citizenship practices; many are forced to leave when no longer deemed valuable by the government, and citizenship is only given to descendants of local Emiratis.
[21] The Gulf Medical University founded by Thumbay Moideen is an Indian contribution to the Higher Education scenario in the UAE.
[26] Indian expats typically save most of their earnings through employment benefits on accommodation and transport, and income tax free provisions of the UAE.
Dawood Ibrahim, head of the organised crime syndicate D-Company, is estimated to have smuggled 20 to 30 tonnes of gold to India.
In 1999, the UAE government secured the release of 25 civilian passengers aboard Indian Airlines flight IC-814 that had been hijacked and forced to land in Dubai en route to New Delhi from Kathmandu, Nepal.
The book was formally launched by HH Shaikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum (Chairman & CEO Emirates Airlines Group and President Dubai Civil Aviation) and written by Deepak Vijay Bhatia (Managing Director of Uncle’s Shop) also one of the oldest Indian family living in Dubai for over 100 Years.
In August 2015, in the backdrop of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit of the country, the UAE government decided to allot land for the construction of a temple in Abu Dhabi.
2014 also marked the official entry of the Indian Premier League (IPL) into UAE with matches held in Abu Dhabi, Dubai & Sharjah.
Bollywood, Tollywood (Telugu), Malayalam cinema and Kollywood are popular among Indian expatriates and are shown in most major theatres in the Emirates' main cities.
