Indians in Afghanistan
Encyclopedia
Indians in Afghanistan currently consist of those working in various construction projects, as part of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

's rebuilding efforts in Afghanistan although the Indian intelligence agency RAW
Research and Analysis Wing
The Research and Analysis Wing is India's external intelligence agency. It was formed in September 1968 after the poor performance of the Intelligence Bureau in the Sino-Indian war of 1962 and the India-Pakistani war of 1965 convinced the then government of India that a specialized, independent...

 is widely quoted to be working in cover to malign Pakistan and train & support insurgents. These workers are estimated to be anywhere between 3,000 and 4,000. Indian nationals stationed in Afghanistan have often faced continous security threats in the country, with kidnappings and many attacks (such as the February 2010 Kabul attack
February 2010 Kabul attack
The February 2010 Kabul attack on February 26, 2010 was a combined suicide bombing and shooting attack. A car bomb levelled the Arya Guesthouse, also known as theHamid Guesthouse,popular with Indian doctors....

) deliberately carried out on them.

History

The population of Afghans of Indian origin was estimated at 45,000 in 1990, mostly descended from migrants from the Punjab region
Punjab region
The Punjab , also spelled Panjab |water]]s"), is a geographical region straddling the border between Pakistan and India which includes Punjab province in Pakistan and the states of the Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh and some northern parts of the National Capital Territory of Delhi...

. Many left Afghanistan after the Taliban came to power in 1996 leaving a population of approximately 1,000, mainly based in Kabul
Kabul
Kabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...

 and Jalalabad
Jalalabad
Jalalabad , formerly called Adinapour, as documented by the 7th century Hsüan-tsang, is a city in eastern Afghanistan. Located at the junction of the Kabul River and Kunar River near the Laghman valley, Jalalabad is the capital of Nangarhar province. It is linked by approximately of highway with...

.

Relations with society

India has often voiced concern about the safety of Indian nationals, as well as interests, in Afghanistan. In the recent past, Indian embassies have often come under attack, with incidents such as the 2008 Indian embassy bombing in Kabul
2008 Indian embassy bombing in Kabul
The 2008 Indian embassy bombing in Kabul was a suicide bomb terror attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan on 7 July 2008 at 8:30 AM local time. The bombing killed 58 people and wounded 141. The suicide car bombing took place near the gates of the embassy during morning hours when...

 and 2009 Kabul Indian embassy attack
2009 Kabul Indian embassy attack
The 2009 Kabul Indian embassy attack was a suicide bomb attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan on 8 October 2009 at 8:30 am local time...

.

See also

  • Hinduism in Afghanistan
    Hinduism in Afghanistan
    Hinduism in Afghanistan has existed for almost as long as Hinduism itself. The religion was widespread in the region until the Islamic conquest of Afghanistan...

  • Sikhism in Afghanistan
    Sikhism in Afghanistan
    Sikhism in Afghanistan is limited to small populations, primarily in major cities, with the largest numbers of Afghan Sikhs living in Jalalabad, Kabul, and Kandahar...

  • Afghanistan-India relations
  • Afghans in India
    Afghans in India
    Afghans in India are a large community numbering up to 10,000. Most are recent Hindu and Sikh refugees who fled the Taliban regime and political instability back in Afghanistan; they are concentrated in and around Delhi...

  • Pakistanis in Afghanistan
    Pakistanis in Afghanistan
    Pakistanis in Afghanistan include diplomats, traders, businesspersons and workers. Because Pakistan and Afghanistan are neighbouring states with a loosely-controlled border, and a distributed population of ethnic Pashtuns and Baloch people, there is constant flow of population between the two...

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