Reaching out to the large Indian Diaspora in the United States, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday assured them that his government was committed to taking forward the reforms process and suggested they help create a 'brain bank' which could be utilised by India.

He said along with reforms, there was need to reinvigorate the Indian economy and unleash the 'animal spirit' of entrepreneurs and the creative potential of Indian professionals through a change of mindset for transformation of society.

At a meeting with Indian American CEOs and prominent Indian Americans in New York, Singh assured them that his government would pursue policies that would enable two-way flow of ideas and opportunities.

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The prime minister said he had always shared the view long expressed by his friend Jagdish Bhagwati of Columbia University that the migration of talent like that of the Diaspora from India did not necessarily constitute a brain drain, but could, in fact, help create a brain bank from which "we can draw provided we put in place at home required policies and infrastructure."

Singh assured them that his government "is committed to taking forward the programme of reforms and liberalization we initiated over a decade ago."

Emphasising the need for India to emerge as a competitive manufacturing power as well as a knowledge-driven economy, Singh said the message from the recent elections in the country was affirmation of policies initiated a decade ago combined with an urgent plea for a more equitable and socially development process.

"I am committed to that process and our government will pursue policies that restore to India its rightful place in the comity of nations."

He said accomplishments of Indians abroad convinced him that the fault lay not in individual capabilities but in collective endeavours and institutional structures.

The prime minister said his government would create the necessary climate for increased investment, both domestic and foreign, private and public in infrastructure especially power, communications, airports and urban amenities.

He noted that cities like Hyderabad and organizations like Infosys were already showing the country the way forward and setting the pace and direction of change.

To be able to move at a faster pace "we must ensure social and political stability, communal harmony and the fostering of a more inclusive economy and society," he said.

The prime minister said the Indian community in the US was a unique bridge between the two countries.

Describing the psyche of a migrant as a complex one, Singh said having migrated from the place of his birth under difficult circumstances and in times of strife, he understood and appreciated this.

"As migrants in search of a home and a living, my family and families like mine had to work much harder. We had to have faith in the future, for the past was bleak and the present was trying," he said.

The prime minister said he had always been impressed by the optimism that characterized the psyche of an Indian American who echoed the "can do" spirit of the American people.