So, with NRIs making the move back to India given the global financial mess, what can they expect in the way of salaries, is the question.

According to India's Head Hunters, NRIs' expectations are somewhat inflated. They are influenced by friend's whose tall stories about Indian salaries painted an optimistic, in fact rosy picture.

The experts remind returning NRIs that they will not make the rupee equivalent of their US salaries. The cost of living in India is lower than in the US which means lower labour costs in India, a factor that will determine a salary back home, as an Indian salary is related to local labour market wage rates with a potential premium for critical skill sets.

The days of expat wages are over as India is now an attractive market for global companies. That, and the fact that the availability of skilled labour in India is flourishing.

Head hunters advise that The Economist's Big Mac Index is a good guideline to use to calculate salaries. It is based on the PPP according to which exchange rates should adjust to equalise the price of a basket of goods and services around the world.

Returning NRIs are advised to banish the pipedreams of instant millionaire status and face the reality of the adjustments that will be necessary.

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The current global crisis/recession/turmoil, is witnessing the return or planned return to India of NRIs from various parts of the West, for reasons of loss of jobs, insecurity of their families, shifting institutional strategies and such.

India's FEMA and RBI have opened up a number of venues that returning NRIs will find friendlier than in the past. Of these, some include, in brief:

Investment in immovable property, foreign exchange, bank deposits, government bonds, shares, securities and foreign direct investment is now available in India for which a large network of notifications and explanatory circulars exist on permissible avenues for the various categories of individuals.

Investment transactions are also being liberalised and NRIs do enjoy certain concessions in relation to existing overseas assets.

Purchase of immovable property can be made from funds remitted through normal banking channels or accounts in India. NRIs can freely invest in partnerships or proprietorships on a non-repatriable basis. Sale and or transfer of property in India is permitted subject to certain regulations.

In summary opportunities abound for NRIs thinking of moving back home. Experts say it is advisable to keep bankers in the loop on various investment or transaction plans.

India's market is indeed booming.

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The US is to institute a new law called Fatca (Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act) that is to be enforced from January 2013 that will tax NRI's bank deposits made in India.

By law a US citizen has to withhold 30% that is to be paid as tax, to the US. Consequently the US is likely to implement Fatca, that mandates full disclosure of bank accounts held by US taxpayers in foreign countries, including India. This also means that either the taxpayer or banks/institutions holding such deposits will have to disclose all the details to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

It is estimated that currently, around Rs.23,000 crores of NRI deposits are sitting in banks in Gujarat alone

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Declining salaries, job cuts, and turmoil in Western economies are driving numbers of NRI professionals back home to India in search of more secure, greener pastures.

A study by a recruiting website says NRIs will account for 19 percent of total recruitment activity during October-December this year. During April-June 2011 NRIs accounted for 21 percent of total recruitment activity.

India's promising economic growth has prompted NRIs to make their way back to India, as well as which many Indian companies are closing down their offices in the West. Admittedly, not just the crisis in the West, but a combination of economic, social and other factors as well, has given rise to the in-flow of returnees.

The study also found that an increasing number of high value NRI professional recruitment is possible as wage gaps have declined, making the advantages of returning to India heavily outweigh the disadvantages.

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Speaking at the United Nations General Assembly, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said "a fast growing India can expand the boundaries of the global economy".

Addressing the UNGA for the first time in 3 years, Singh said trends in the US, Japan and Europe are affecting confidence in the world financial and capital markets. Also, declining global demand and availability of capital is increasing trade barriers and mounting debts are threatening the international system.

PM Singh warned against protectionist measures as a response to the global economic crisis and called for better coordination of macro economic policies of major economies.

Singh also pitched for a permanent seat for India on the UN Security Council and made a strong rebuttal of Western military intervention in Libya to dislodge Gaddafi saying societies cannot be reordered from the outside through military force.

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