Scaling up Down Under

Monica Sharma

The Indian population in Australia has exponentially grown in the last two years according to the preliminary estimates by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). These suggest there are 5.92 lakh Indians living in Australia as of June, 2018, in comparison to 4.55 lakh Indians in Census 2016. 

After England and China, India ranks third on the list of residents born overseas. The estimated figures of Australian population also suggest that 29 per cent are born overseas. Besides, the number of Indian students studying in Down Under has too increased.

Australian MP Steve Georganas said, “India, a part of Commonwealth, will soon become the top-source country of migrants to Australia. Historically, Indians have contributed much to Australia. We have so much in common such as we have taken cues from the British systems. Australia offers many opportunities to Indians.”

Calling for the right immigration policies, the Labour Party leader said, “It’s important to introduce the long-stay parent visa, keeping in mind the family structure of various immigrants, especially Indians. It is our duty to protect the rights of migrants, specifically of students who are being ‘underpaid and threatened with visa conditions’.”

The latest figures also suggest the use of Indian languages has also gone up in Australia. Hindi tops the chart with 1.59 lakh speakers followed by Punjabi with 1.32 lakh speakers. Some of the other Indian languages spoken include Tamil, Bengali, Malayalam, Gujarati, Telugu, Marathi and Kannada.

The Indians are also contributing immensely to the Australian economy. A report — ‘Economic potential and impact of Sikhs in Australia’, says, “Sikhs contributed $8.1 billion to the Australia’s Gross Domestic Product in 2016.” The study was conducted by Sikh Youth Australia and the Young Sikh Professionals Network (YSPN).

The financial contribution of Sikhs has grown from $1.1 billion in 2006 to $8.1 billion in 2016. The report highlights there are 1.25 lakh Sikhs in Australia, of whom the majority work in the transport, healthcare and social assistance, accommodation and the food service industries. It points out that the Sikhs are the youngest and fastest-growing ethnic minority in Australia and significantly more educated than the rest of the population. 

Karan Anand, former chairman of the YSPN, said the report was conducted to find out what productive impact the Sikhs have on Australia and to help understand the strength and areas of opportunity for the community. “As the Sikh population is increasing here, their contribution to the economy will grow further.”

Ramneek Singh, chairman of the YSPN, said, “The core values of Sikhs are aligned with the broader Australian values of equality and hard work. In the 1990s, it was mainly Indian professionals who were migrating to Australia. But now, more Indian students are interested in studying here.”

He said, “There are some structural concerns in the system. Highly educated Indians are not getting their fair share of income. We, as an organisation, are looking forward to help them (the government and locals) address these.”