BRITAIN RECENTLY announced the controversial plans to institute a
1,000-pound deposit to be paid up by sponsors when their relatives
apply for visa to visit them. Add to that the controversial new points
system to regulate work permits under the Highly Skilled Migrant
Programme (HSMP) will be introduced in UK at end of this month and from
April 1 in India. All the changes make Sushil Shinde, a Mumbai resident
a little nervous. He and his family wish to visit his relatives based
in UK, while his elder son seeks to migrate to that country in search
of employment.
Remdious
Rodrigues, a former Goa Shipyard employee - a government undertaking -
has no such concerns as he is on his way to UK with a stopover in
Portugal to collect his Portuguese passport and become a Portuguese
citizen after surrendering his Indian passport. He is a step away from
giving up his Indian
citizenship in search of his European dreams.
The
50-year-old Indian from the holiday resort state of Goa who has his
family of wife and children still based in Goa did not have to make
rounds at the immigrations offices of the UK embassy in India, but
pursued his English dreams through the Portuguese connections. Goa was
a former Portuguese colony till 1961, until the Indian army liberated
it, on December 19 that year.
An
Indian born in that country and who has spend his entire life in India
can he become a European Union citizen, is the immediate question,
which comes to mind. For some with no connection to history Indians
opting for Portuguese citizenship may seem strange. But this is the
route, which Indians from the western state of Goa and union
territories of Daman and Diu have been exploring to further their
European dreams.
Yes, people
from the former Portuguese colonies in India, which includes Goa,
Daman, Diu, Nagar and Haveli can exercise the option to become citizens
of Portugal subject to certain conditions.
Rodrigues
is not the lone Indian who has opted for Portuguese citizenship. There
have been hundreds and thousands of Indians from the Portuguese
colonies that have gone to Europe and settled there after acquiring
Portuguese citizenship. A Portuguese citizenship, which gives them
passage to work and settle any where in Europe as European citizens.
For
most Goans the most favoured destination is UK. Rough estimates
indicate that there are more than 50,000 Portuguese Goans in England.
The reason for favouring England over other countries is the language,
which the Goans find ease to adjust, while the residents from Daman and
Diu have settled in different countries.
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