“There is a big jump in immigration from India since the 1990s. The number of immigrants to the country has grown over 10 times, from a mere 20,000 in 1991 to 210,000 this year. Eighty per cent of them are from Punjab.”
— Vincenzo de Luca, Italy’s Ambassador to India
Italy is home to the highest number of Indians in the European Union and 80 per cent of them are Punjabis, reported the Indian Express.
Vincenzo de Luca, Italy’s Ambassador to India, noted the big jump in immigration from India since the 1990s. The number of immigrants to the country has grown over 10 times, from a mere 20,000 in 1991 to 210,000 this year. Eighty per cent of them are from Punjab.
Many scholars, he told the Indian Express, describe this as a quiet Indian revolution in Europe.
“The Indian and Punjabi communities in Italy are one of the most integrated in the economic system, especially in agriculture and dairy business,” said the Ambassador, on his maiden visit to Chandigarh. The number of Indians getting work permits is also on the rise as is the strength of students going to Italy for higher studies. The embassy issued around 15,000 new work permits till October this year, a big jump from 380 in 2021.
“A large number of these permits were given due to the request from Italian business community because they see Punjabis as a hardworking community,” he was quoted saying.
Every year, around 5,000 youngsters make their way to Italian colleges and universities. That is why the Ambassador is keen to promote Italian language courses in Punjab educational institutes.
Ambassador Luca remembers how he had a taste of Punjab before he arrived to take over as the Ambassador in 2019. “The then Ambassador of India to Italy Rinita Sandhu called me to celebrate the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak.’’
Luca, who is all praise for the “hardworking Punjabis”, is now on a “matchmaking” mission to promote business between the Punjabi business community, their Italian counterparts and Punjabi Italians.
The Italian Ambassador also sees tremendous potential for collaboration with the Punjab government in food processing, agricultural machinery, dairy farming, and cold chain packaging. “We have the most sustainable agriculture with the least CO2 emissions, we have also mastered the transformation to organic farming,” he says. Luca is eager to help the state take the next leap forward in farming and dairy business
Last year, the bilateral trade between Italy and Punjab touched 35 million Euros. Luca believes this trade volume can get much bigger. Punjabis in Italy, says the envoy, are big savers. “We need to find a way to funnel these remittances into investments.”
The ambassador also sees tremendous potential for collaboration with the Punjab government in food processing, agricultural machinery, dairy farming, and cold chain packaging. “We have the most sustainable agriculture with the least CO2 emissions, we have also mastered the transformation to organic farming,” he says. Luca is eager to help the state take the next leap forward in farming and dairy business, according to the Indian Express report.
Another idea he is keen to share with the state is that of using Geographic Indication Source (GIS) mapping to boost tourism. “Italy has the highest number of GIS products, it’s very important for promoting various territories,” he says. This can be used to promote tourism in India as well. “In India, Punjab has the best dal makhani, Varanasi is great for lassi while Kerala has the best prawns,” he adds.
But everyone knows, Italy is not just about business or agriculture, it’s also about art, culture, fashion, design, films and food. “We organised the highest number of cultural events in the last three years,” says Ambassador Luca. These ranged from musical nights and fashion design events to Italian cuisine weekends and film festivals. Efforts are afoot to bring Italian opera to India with the Neemrana Foundation.
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