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Vajpayee likely to announce dual citizenship >From Indo-Asian News Service New Delhi, Jan 8 (IANS) Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee is expected to announce the government's decision to grant dual citizenship to people of Indian origin (PIOs) at their first-ever gathering here Thursday. Dual citizenship has long been sought, particularly by PIOs in Britain and the U.S, but there have been serious reservations within the government and political parties over the issue due to its legal and security implications. There are an estimated 20 million PIOs spread across the world. The government has, however, said dual citizenship would be restricted to countries that grant this on a reciprocal basis and even then it would not be automatic. PIOs in South Asian countries would not be entitled to dual citizenship. It has also clarified that those granted dual citizenship would not be entitled to take part in Indian elections. Nearly 1,400 PIOs from 60 countries have confirmed their participation in the conference and many of them have already arrived, said the organisers - the external affairs ministry and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). While Vajpayee will inaugurate the conference, his Mauritius counterpart Anerood Jugnauth, currently on a weeklong state visit to India, will deliver a special address at the inaugural session. The conference has been organised for the people and authorities to understand the sentiments of the Indian diaspora and its expectations from India and evolve a policy framework for sustained interaction. Culture Minister Jagmohan inaugurated three exhibitions on the eve of the conference to give the participants a feeling of the common heritage. The exhibitions are titled: "Our science and technology heritage", "Pictorial transformations," that detail developments in Indian art since the 1850s, and "Eternal images of Indian art," which includes a 500-year-old sculpture of "Mother Goddess" from Harappa, 1st century sculptures of the Buddha and bronzes of the Chola period. Officials said the government had waived entry fees for the three exhibitions for delegates to the conference. --Indo-Asian News Service
