本文從社會和文化的面向來探討印度中國社群的生活及其如何處理 認同的議題。歷史證據顯示，印度和中國兩國在文明上的接觸已經超過兩 千年，商人和僧侶已經住在彼此的國家數十年，甚至是以此為家。然而，那 些囿於經濟和政治因素而從中國遷往印度的移民們則可追溯到十八世 紀，這些移民在後來的兩百年中漸漸將印度視為自己的家鄉。本文的目的 在於探索這個由中國移民組成的少數社群如何受到1962 年中印邊界戰爭 的影響，著重於兩國間的政治衝突如何對社會生活造成影響。作者呼籲重 視印度中國移民社群數量的減少，並主張調查中國印度人的認同、生活現 況、社會地位和未來期許有其急迫性，這不僅為了社會和文化研究，同時 也是因為海外移民對決策的影響，尤其是海外移民在發展策略、減貧和經 濟成長上的重要性已逐漸受到重視。許多印度人並不知道華人已經在印度這片土地上居住超過兩個世紀，其中一些華裔印度人分佈在加爾各答，還有像安巴拉(Ambala)、德拉敦(Dehradun)、艾哈邁達巴德(Ahmedabad)、泰米爾納德(Nagapattinam)等地區。印度國內缺乏這些移民的資訊可能起因於這個社群的規模太小，使其在印度社會缺乏能見度。本文試圖揭開這些在外貌上雖然有所差異但本質上卻已經融入印度環境的微小移民社群的歷史和現況。

This paper provides sociological and cultural inputs regarding the lives of the Chinese community in India and their handling the issue of identity. There are historical evidences to state that India and China had civilizational contacts for over two millennia, and that the traders and scholar monks lived in the host country for several decades or even making it their home. However, migrations from China to India due to economic and political reasons can be traced to the late 18th century with steady stream of Chinese migrants making India their home in the subsequent 200 years. The paper aims at looking into the history of the Chinese diaspora in India with the main focus being on the effects of the 1962 War on the lives of the members of this small community. It attempts at highlighting how political conflict between the country of ethnic origin and host has impacted on their social lives. It draws attention towards the dwindling numbers of the Chinese Diaspora in India, and argues that there is an urgent need to investigate the issues of identity of the Chinese Indians, present conditions, social status and future expectations not only for the sake of sociological and cultural study but also from the perspective that how diasporas can impact on policy decisions given the growing belief in the importance of the role of diaspora in development strategies, poverty reduction and economic growth.