INDIAN AND NRI/PIO ECONOMIC SUMMIT
Thursday, September 12th, 9 a.m. to 5.30 p.m.
Theme: Economic Development at the Crossroads: India and NRIs/PIOs
 
Global Organization of the People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) is organizing a one-day economic conference which will discuss the issues of India's and PIO's economic development in the global context of NRIs, PIOs and the changing goals and strategies. The range of issues is wide and covers trade, technology, macro and micro financing strategies, empowerment of the Indian rural sector, and last but not the least, the role of NRI and PIOs in the holistic development of India and countries with large PIO population.
 
PROGRAM
 
INDIAN AND NRI/PIO ECONOMIC SUMMIT
Wednesday, Sept. 11th
7:00 p.m. to 10:30 p. m. - Solemn Ceremony to honor the victims of 911 terrorist attacks, Welcome Reception/Dinner and Inauguration of the Economic Summit
 
Maharaja Restaurant, 230 East 44 St. (between 2nd and 3rd Ave., Manhattan)
 
v Welcome Greetings - Dr. Thomas Abraham, President, GOPIO International
v Greetings - Hon. Pramathesh Rath, Consul General of India, New York
v Inaugural Address - Hon. Bhishma K. Agnihotri, Indian Ambassador-at-Large for NRIs/PIOs
v Keynote Address - Prof. Madhav D. Nalapat, Professor Geopolitics and UNESCO Peace Chair, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, New Delhi
 
Concluding Remarks - Dr. Sushila Gidwani, Co-Chaiperson, The Economic Summit
 
Thursday, Sept. 12th, INDIAN AND NRI/PIO ECONOMIC SUMMIT – Conference Sessions
Venue: Crowne Plaza Hotel at La Guardia Airport, NYC (Admission to Economic Summit is FREE, luncheon contributions accepted)
 
9.00 a.m. to 10.30 a.m. Session I - Global Economic and Political Environment in Twenty-first Century
Chairperson: Dr. Sushila Gidwani, Prof. Emeritus, Dept. of Economics, Manhattan College.
 
Speakers:
 

Dr. C-Rene Dominique, Professor of Economics, Lavelle University, Canada,	On the Viability of Unfettered Globalization
Dr. Rashmi Mayur, Director, International Institute of Sustainable Future, New York	Challenges to India: Beyond the Earth Summit
Joydeep Mukherji: Director, Sovereign Ratings Group, Standard & Poor's, New York	Economic Development: India and China - A Comparative Analysis
Dr. Asiananda: Prof. of Philosophy, Intercultural Open University, Netherlands and Holder, Sri Aurobindo Chair for Human Unity	The Pax Indica of the Spirit - PIO Role in Envisioning a Post-Cold War Global Peace Order

 
10.30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Coffee/Tea Break
 
11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Session II - Trade, Development and Technology
Chairperson: Dr. Surendra Kaushik, Professor of Economics, Pace University, New York, NY
 
Speakers:
 

Dr. T.N. Srinivasan, Professor & Chairperson, Department of Economics, Yale University, CT	Subject to confirm
Dr. Anirvan Banerji, Director, Economic Cycles Research Institute, New York, NY	Business Cycles and Economic Volatility
Dr. Muthu Sankaran, Development Activist, Harford, CT,	Trade for Prosperity & Service for Humanity
Rangaswami Elango: Rural Development Activist, Kuthambakkam, Tamilnadu, India	Rural Empowerment - A Gandhian Strategy

 
 
12:30 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. Lunch
 
2:00 p.m. to 3:30p.m. Session III - Economic Modernization and Finance
Chairperson: Dr. Piyush Agarwal, Former Expert, UNESCO and Superintendent, NJ School Region
 
Speakers:
 

Dr. Ajay Shah, Consultant, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, New Delhi	Subject to confirm
Dr. Hrishikesh Vinod, Professor of Economics and Director of the Institute of Ethics and Economic Policy, Fordham University, NY	Open Economy and Financial Burden of Corruption: Theory and Application to Asia
Harsh Bhargava, Director, I Create, New Jersey and India	Creating Job creators instead of Job Seekers through Grassroots Entrepreneurship
Dr. Ganga P. Ramdas, Professor, Department of Economics, Lincoln University, PA	Property Rights in the Development process.
Dr. Prabhakar: Director, Society for Rural Improvement	Empowerment of poor women - Micro-credit and Poverty Alleviation in the socio-economic cultural context

 
3:30 p.m. to 4.00 p.m. Coffee/Tea Break
 
4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Session IV
Political Stability, Economic Privatization, Global Interaction and Development - Role of NRIs/PIOs
Chairperson: Dr. Sid Gautam, Professor of Economics, Methodist University, South Carolina
 
Speakers:
 

Dr. Abraham M. George: Founder, The George Foundation, Bangalore and New Jersey	Rural Development, and the Effective Role of NGOs.
Ravi Dev, Chairman, ROAR, Guyana	Development Opportunities for PIO-populated Countries: Guyana
Prashant Gupta, Community Activist, Chicago & Badri Ratnam, Activist, Pittsburgh	Tigers Out of Dinosaurs: a Challenge for Higher Education
Jagdish Mundhra, Development Activist, Chicago and Rajasthan	Rural Empowerment: a Challenge of Rural Education
Ar. UK Bhoobalan, Architect, Chennai	Urban Planning and Economic Development

 
Although the Economic Summit admission is FREE, pre-registration is required. Contact: Dr. Sushila Gidwani-Buschi at shilaji@aol.com (Tel: 914-693-4219).