This work investigates the historical, social, and economic factors that drove the migration of people from India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh to various overseas territories. Hugh Tinker, a noted historian of South Asia and the British Empire, utilizes archival records and colonial administrative data to analyze the patterns of labor migration and the subsequent integration of these diaspora communities. The book argues that the legacy of the British colonial system fundamentally shaped the conditions and trajectories of these migrant populations across the globe.

Scholars frequently cite this text as a foundational resource for understanding the mechanics of the South Asian diaspora during the 19th and 20th centuries. The prose is noted for its academic rigor and its detailed synthesis of complex colonial administrative history.