Remittances to India surged to $66.13 billion in 2011-12 ascompared to $55.62 billion in the previous year, Minister of Overseas IndianAffairs Vayalar Ravi said Friday.
Remittance flow has risen consistently in the last threeyears. In 2009-10, total remittance flow to India through private transfers was$53.63 billion, Ravi said in a written reply in parliament.
Referring to a study by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), theminister said Gulf countries accounted for 27 percent of total remittanceinflows to India during the first half of 2009-10.
Ravi said the government has launched an initiative called"Mahatma Gandhi Pravasi Suraksha Yojana" to help in resettlement ofthe overseas Indians.
"By providing a co-contribution from the government,this scheme encourages and enables overseas Indian workers to save for theirreturn and resettlement and to save for their old age. This also provides afree life insurance cover against natural death during the period of coverage,under the scheme," he said.