Time, cost of domestic remittances must reduce: Jairam Ramesh

New Delhi: Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Saturday called for a reduction in the time and cost of domestic remittances, saying they help the economies of several eastern and northern states, including Uttar Pradesh.

In a post on X, he noted that while India's remittances from abroad get more policy attention than domestic remittances, this must change due to the volume of domestic remittances as well as their socio-economic profile.

"India's remittances from abroad in 2025 totalled about USD 135 billion. This is around 3.4 per cent of GDP. These remittances have been exceedingly important for managing the country's balance of payments and have been crucial for the economies of a number of states like Kerala. These remittances have been well studied," Ramesh said.

On the other hand, he pointed out, there is less awareness regarding the scale of domestic remittances, which refer to money sent by migrant workers from one state to another within India.

He cited estimates for Kerala, indicating that domestic remittances from the state may account for about one-third of the overseas remittances received by it.

Ramesh referenced an article by Robbin Van Jan Duijne, a scholar at the University of Amsterdam, published in The India Forum, which estimates domestic remittances across India to be between USD 36 billion and USD 48 billion in 2024.

"This is anywhere between a third and two-fifths of remittances to India from overseas. Unfortunately, these domestic remittances generate less headlines, create less enthusiasm, and do not get the policy attention that overseas remittances get.

"This must change, given both the volume of domestic remittances as well as their socio-economic profile. The time and cost of such remittances must get reduced. Domestic remittances are significantly helping the economies of the eastern states as well as some northern states like UP," the Congress leader said in his post.