ABSTRACT
India has recently joined other sending country governments in acknowledging its diaspora's potential role in homeland development. This chapter outlines the gaps in the migration and development literature with regard to collective efforts. India has recently joined other sending country governments in acknowledging its diaspora's potential role in homeland development. It explains why the Indian-American diaspora is prone to forming transnational organizations, outlining the characteristics of these organizations and their historical formations. Finally, the author's findings are reviewed to show how since the 1980s, Indian-American transnational organizations have not only reflected social, economic, and political trends in India, but have also shaped them. Analysing the varying types of transnational diaspora organizations enables people to examine the differences between financial and social remittances motivated by varying identities. Indian-American diaspora organizations based on social identities assist their own social constituency in India and the US. Each group constructs its respective social constituency, drawing from political and economic interpretations of experiences in India.
