Page 3 - Indian Americans

Small Indian-American community making grand contributions in US: Report

The Indian-American community, which has grown to five million in 2023, has broken through many barriers to become one of the most influential immigrant groups in the US now, a report said Thursday, observing that their story is about motivated immigrants and their children chasing the American dream. Indian Americans account for only 1.5 per cent of the US population, yet they continue to have an outsized and positive impact across different aspects of US society, said Indiaspora founder MR Rangaswami. The Indian American-driven innovation flows to the country's bottom line and is laying the groundwork for the next phase of economic growth, he said. The report Indiaspora Impact Report: Small Community, Big Contributions, conducted by Boston Consulting Group, is the first volume in a series to look at the impact of the Indian diaspora, with a special focus on public service, business, culture and innovation in the United States. Noting that the Indian diaspora's economic impact in

People of Indian origin feel very proud to be Indian, says FIIDS chief

Observing that there has been a paradigm shift in India's stature at the global stage and its all round development in the last 10 years under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, the head of a Indian diaspora think-tank on Friday said the global Indian community right now feel very proud to be an Indian. Indian diaspora right now feels very proud to be an Indian and I think a lot of credit goes to the leadership of Prime Minister Modi in these last two terms. It really did a paradigm shift and infused confidence not just on Indian Americans but also people of Indian origin all over the world because they're now getting respected, Khanderao Kand, chief of Policy and Strategy at Foundation for India and Indian Diaspora Studies (FIIDS), told PTI Friday. India is not just strong, but India's position on various issues are really appreciated. India is making awesome progress on the climate side. India is developing its infrastructure. Indian diaspora when visiting India now from ..

Indian Americans should run for office at all levels: Raja Krishnamoorthi

It's time for Indian Americans to run for office at all levels and never miss to vote, influential Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi told community members gathered here from across the country. We have to vote. Will everyone here vote in that coming election? Because we can talk politics all day, but doing politics is what matters. Remember, politics is not just a noun, it's a verb. And we have to do politics this year. We have to vote, Krishnamoorthi told a room full of eminent Indian Americans who had gathered in the American Capital for the annual summit of Indian American Impact, a Democratic think-tank. Secondly, we have to work on political causes bigger than ourselves. We have to support our local mandirs. We have to support our local mosques. We have to support our local not-for-profits. I hope you do that and you give generously. But we also have to work on political issues bigger than ourselves, said the Indian American Congressman, who represents the suburb of Chicago in th

Biden admin must listen to youth voices on Gaza: Indian-American students

The Biden administration should listen to the voices of the youth over the war in Gaza, two Indian-American students have said, as they came out in support of the ongoing protests on college campuses across the US over demand to divest from Israel. Protests over the Israel-Hamas war have spread across US university and college campuses in recent weeks, leading to disruptions and arrests. A lot of students are currently protesting with various forms of sit-ins in order to try and demand the schools to divest from Israel, Aara Sampath, a rising freshman at the University of Pennsylvania told PTI in an interview. The term "rising freshman" refers to a student who is about to start their freshman year of high school. Since the 7 October attack by Hamas and Israel's retaliatory assault, students have launched rallies, sit-ins, fasts and, most recently, encampments against the war. They are demanding that their schools, many with massive endowments, financially divest from ...

GenZ Indian-American running for Georgia State Senate raises over $280K

Ashwin Ramaswami, the first Gen Z Indian-American running for a US State legislature, has raised over USD 280,000, which is considered to be a substantial figure at the state level. Ramaswami, 24, has outraised his incumbent opponent Shawn Still by 22 times in the latest filing period from Feb 1 to April 30. While Ramaswami raised over USD 146,000, his opponent raised only USD 6,400. The two are running for the State Senate in the District 48 of Georgia. According to the latest public campaign finance report, Ramaswami has raised a total of over USD 280,000 and has USD 208,000 cash on hand, his campaign said. Our latest reports are further evidence that our community values honesty and integrity in our leadership above all, said Ramaswami, a second-generation Indian-American who has built a career in software engineering, election security, and technology law and policy research. We've built a grassroots campaign with unprecedented momentum to ensure we elect a leader who will ser

H-1B visa holders can now sue over fraud-linked visa revocations

H-1B visas will now have the right to take legal action if their visa is revoked due to multiple filings, charging their employer with fraud. Here's how

Substantial increase in attacks on Hindus in US: Congressman Thanedar

Observing that there is substantial increase in attacks against Hindus and Hinduism in the United States, an Indian-American Congressman warned that this was just the beginning of a coordinated anti-Hindu attack. Today I am seeing in the United States a substantial increase of attacks on Hinduism. A lot of misinformation is being circulated whether it is online or otherwise, Congressman Shri Thanedar told reporters at a news conference held at the National Press Club here on Monday. Thanedar and four other Indian American lawmakers Ro Khanna, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Ami Bera and Pramila Jayapal had recently written to the Department of Justice seeking an investigation on the recent surge in attacks on Hindu temples and places of worship. At the press conference organised by HinduAction, a non-profit body, Thanedar complained that no action has been taken against those responsible for the attacks and no arrests have been made either. We have experienced substantially more events of t

Former Jaguars manager who stole $22 mn from team gets 78 months in prison

A former Jacksonville Jaguars financial manager who pled guilty to stealing more than $22 million from the NFL franchise through its virtual credit card programme was sentenced to 78 months in federal prison Tuesday. Judge Henry Lee Adams Jr sentenced Amit Patel, 31, in US District Court in Jacksonville. Patel, wearing a charcoal suit and a burgundy tie, showed no emotion inside the packed courthouse as the punishment was handed down. Prosecutors said Patel has returned $1.89 million, leaving his restitution tab at $21,132,454.40 -- a figure the judge acknowledged he will never be able to pay back following a felony conviction. Patel pled guilty in December to one count of wire fraud and one count of making an illegal monetary transaction. The judge sentenced Patel to 78 months on each count, to run concurrently. It was the lowest number under sentencing guidelines. He also got three years of supervised release. Patel's lawyer argued for a lighter sentence Tuesday, asking for no mo

Indian-American Sonali Korde sworn in as assistant to USAID administrator

From 2005 to 2013, Korde served as a senior technical advisor for the President's Malaria Initiative in USAID's Bureau for Global Health

19-year-old Indian-American student found dead in US, second case this week

On Shreyas Reddy's death, the Consulate General of India in New York has ruled out foul play according to the initial information available

Revolutionary changes taking place in India-US relationship: Amb Sandhu

Revolutionary changes are taking place in the India-US relationship, the outgoing Indian Ambassador here, Taranjit Singh Sandhu has said, stressing that the bilateral ties have only covered the tip of the iceberg and are going to go far and wide. Addressing a gathering of Indian Americans at the Republic Day celebration here, Sandhu said it is important that their second generation remains connected to India. I only wanted to tell you that today revolutionary changes are taking place in India, also in US-India relations," he said, "And therefore it is important that your children and your families are aware of India, stay connected with India, Sandhu, who retires later this month from the foreign service after more than 35 years, said As international capital and multinational companies move into India, all the young Indian Americans will be uniquely placed to get most of those job opportunities, Sandhu said. So therefore, not only for emotional, cultural, and so many other reason

Indian-American Preesha, 9, among world's brightest students: Johns Hopkins

Preesha, who goes to Warm Spring Elementary in California's Fremont, was among 16,000 students from 90 countries to take the US-based JH-CTY test in Summer 2023 as a Grade 3 student

Hindu-Americans can play key role in Prez Biden's re-election: Official

The Democratic Party must mobilise Hindu-Americans as they can play a critical role in President Joe Biden's re-election next year, given the backlash his administration is facing from the Muslim-Americans amidst the Israel-Hamas war, according to a prominent Indian-American fundraiser for the party. Ramesh Kapur, a Massachusetts-based political fundraiser who was here to attend the winter retreat of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), said Hindu-Americans and Indian-Americans have traditionally been overwhelming Democratic supporters, but in the last few election cycles, the Republican share in their vote banks has seen an upward trajectory. Kapur, who was also invited to the Holiday Party by President Biden at the White House, told PTI that he has submitted a detailed report to the DNC and party leaders as to why Hindu votes have become "very critical" for Biden's re-election campaign ahead of the 2024 general elections. Kapur, who claims that he helped convince California ..

Indian-American Vanita Gupta to step down as US Associate Attorney General

Vanita Gupta, the highest-ranking Indian-American in the Department of Justice, will step down as the Associate Attorney General of the US in February 2024. Gupta, the first woman of colour to serve as the Department of Justice's third-highest ranking official, led its "Reproductive Rights Taskforce to defend the reproductive freedoms that are protected by federal law," a statement by Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said on Thursday. The 49-year-old has served as the Associate Attorney General since confirmation by the Senate in 2021 and will depart from the post in February 2024, according to the Department of Justice (DoJ). Acknowledging Gupta's "extraordinary service", Garland said that her commitment to the "pursuit of justice and relentless focus on bringing people together to find common ground made her an incredibly effective leader in dealing with some of the most complex challenges facing the American people." "She played an integral role in the department's efforts to

Indian-American Sikh leader says no support for Khalistan movement in US

A prominent Indian-American Sikh leader has said that there is no support for the Khalistan movement in the US, neither in the government nor in the community. Jassee Singh from the Sikhs of America organisation also urged the Modi government to provide a comprehensive developmental package for Punjab to address several key challenges being faced by the state, including the problem of illicit drugs among the youths. Modi Government's relationship with the Sikhs and the things that he has done for this community is unprecedented as compared to the previous governments. There is no doubt about that," Singh told PTI in an interview. "At the same time, there are several Sikh issues that need to be addressed. This includes the atrocities against the Sikhs in the 1984 riots. No Sikhs would forget this, Singh said. The Modi government has tried its best to address the concerns of the Sikhs, but there are a number of issues that he still needs to address, he said adding that the prime ...

Indian American varsity in Silicon Valley will have courses in AI & medical

The University of SiliconAndhra, the first-of-its-kind university in the US, being run by Indian Americans and offering courses in Indian dances and languages, is now expanding to a sprawling campus that would have a medical college, an international standard cricket stadium and is launching new courses in advance technologies like artificial intelligence. Many people can't believe that there is a university that offers graduate programmes in Indian arts and languages...Initially, we had students only from the United States, but now we have students even from India, Malaysia, South Africa and Dubai, Anand Kuchibhotla, president of the University of SiliconAndhra told PTI in a recent interview. Accredited by WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC), a US Department of Education recognised and approved accrediting agency in the United States, the University of SiliconAndhra currently has its main campus in Milpitas, California. At present, it offers six Master of Arts, fi

Indian-American VC urges govt to reduce rules, regulations for startups

A top Indian-American venture capitalist from Silicon Valley has urged India to create a short-term inter-ministerial commission to review the rules and regulations governing the startups to facilitate them to be the next Google and Facebook of the world. The (Indian) government should focus on reducing the compliance burden on startups and businesses, Venkatesh Shukla, the former president of TiE Silicon Valley, told PTI in a recent interview here in California. I think the most important thing he could do is to create either a short-term commission or a committee, inter-ministerial, inter-departmental, to take a fresh look at the rules and regulations governing startups across all departments and figure out what makes sense and what is just a nuisance without adding a whole lot of value to the country, he said. A seed-stage investor, Shukla is the founder and general partner of Monta Vista Capital and has a proven track record of leading companies through rapid growth in his roles

South Asian Americans have woven Diwali traditions into fabric of US: Biden

South Asian Americans have played a key role in the development of the US, President Joe Biden has said, acknowledging the role of the community that has woven Diwali traditions into the fabric of the nation. To more than one billion Hindus, Jains, Sikhs, and Buddhists celebrating in America and around the world, we wish you a happy Diwali, Biden said in a message. Over the course of generations, South Asian Americans have woven Diwali traditions into the fabric of our nation -- symbolising the message of seeking the light of wisdom, love, and unity over the darkness of ignorance, hate, and division, Biden said. The message posted on X, formally Twitter, on November 12 has since gone viral and has over 2.1 million views. It's a message that has helped our nation emerge stronger from the past few difficult years and matters now more than ever. On this Diwali, may we reflect on the strength of our shared light and embrace the enduring spirit of this holiday and of our nation, Biden .

US SEC to impose measures to halt $130 mn fraud targeting Indian Americans

The Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday announced that it has obtained a temporary restraining order, asset freeze, and other emergency relief to halt an ongoing fraud targeting the Indian American community that has raised nearly USD 130 million since April 2021. Nanban Ventures LLC, its three founders Gopala Krishnan, Manivannan Shanmugam, and Sakthivel Palani Gounder, collectively known as the Founders, and three other entities that these Founders control are allegedly involved in committing the fraud, the SEC said in a press statement. Unsealed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, the SEC complaint alleged that the defendants raised more than USD 89 million from more than 350 investors for investments in purported venture capital funds that the Founders managed through Nanban Ventures LLC. They also raised over USD 39 million from 10 investors which was later invested directly in the three other entities controlled by the Founders. The complaint .

Indian-Americans condemn rising instances of hate against Hindus in Canada

A group of eminent Indian-Americans has condemned the brazen hateful comments and a hostile environment against Hindus in Canada and asked Ottawa not to mix freedom of expression with freedom for terror and endorse hate crimes by being silent on the issue. The demand by Indian-Americans came after an offensive video from a pro-Khalistan group threatening Hindus in Canada to leave the country went viral. It is concerning to see Khalistani terrorists repeatedly threaten Hindu Canadians by desecrating and scarring Hindu sacred spaces on Canadian soil. Silence in the face of such brazen Hinduphobia - or worse, the justification that this is an acceptable form of political expression - is tantamount to the endorsement of hate crimes, said Professor Indu Vishwanathan, co-founder and co-director of the Understanding Hinduphobia at the Hindu University of America. The Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau should not mix freedom of expression with freedom for terror. He should instead stop