Indians In Us

Two Indian students killed, one injured in car accident in Pennsylvania

Two Indian students have been killed in an accident in Pennsylvania after their car crashed into a tree and struck a bridge, officials said. Another passenger in the front seat of the vehicle was injured in the accident early Saturday morning and rushed to a local hospital, they said. Deeply saddened to learn about the unfortunate road accident in which two Indian students from Cleveland State University, Manav Patel (20) and Saurav Prabhakar (23) lost their lives, the Consulate General of India in New York said in a post on X Monday. The consulate added, Our thoughts and prayers are with their families during this difficult time. The Consulate is in touch with the families and has assured them of all possible assistance. According to a report in Lancasteronline.com, the young students were killed Saturday in a single-vehicle crash at 7 am on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Brecknock Township. According to the Lancaster County coroner's office and Pennsylvania state police, Patel and

US govt cannot deport Indian student until court rules, judge orders

A federal judge has ordered immigration officials not to deport an Indian student who was detained by the Trump Administration and accused of spreading Hamas propaganda in the latest battle over speech on US college campuses. US District Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles in Alexandria, Virginia, ordered that Badar Khan Suri shall not be removed from the United States unless and until the Court issues a contrary order. Suri's attorney wrote in an earlier court filing that Suri was targeted because of his social media posts and his wife's identity as a Palestinian and her constitutionally protected speech. Suri is a postdoctoral fellow at Georgetown University. Dr Suri is an academic, not an activist," his attorney Hassan Ahmad wrote in a court filing on Thursday. But he spoke out on social media about his views on the Israel-Gaza war. Even more so, his wife is an outspoken critic of the Israeli government and the violence it has perpetrated against Palestinians. Suri's attorney argued

Parents of missing Indian student ask officials to declare her dead

The family of missing 20-year-old Indian student Sudiksha Konanki has asked police in the Dominican Republic to declare her dead, according to US media reports. Konanki, a citizen of India and a permanent resident of the United States, was last seen on March 6 at the Riu Republic Resort in Punta Cana town. She has gone missing while on vacation in the Dominican Republic and US federal law enforcement agencies are working with authorities in the Caribbean country in the probe into her disappearance. Despite an extensive search, her body has not been found. Dominican Republic National Police spokesperson Diego Pesqueira said Konanki's family has sent the agency a letter requesting a declaration of death, NBC News reported on Tuesday. The Konanki family did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday night. Meanwhile, authorities in the Dominican Republic have confiscated the passport of the man who is the last person known to have been with Konanki, according to a sourc

NAPA urges Punjab govt to set up fund for rehabilitation of deported youths

The North American Punjabi Association (NAPA) on Wednesday urged the Punjab government to establish a rehabilitation fund to support young boys and girls being deported from the United States. In a statement, NAPA Executive Director Satnam Singh Chahal said lack of support and resources for these returnees could lead to severe social and economic challenges for the state. He warned the Punjab government that negligence in addressing this growing crisis would only create more problems for the state, exacerbating unemployment, mental health issues and potential involvement in illegal activities. This comes amid reports that a US military plane carrying 205 illegal immigrants hailing from Punjab and neighbouring states is likely to land at the Amritsar airport on Wednesday afternoon. "Many of these young individuals leave their homes with dreams of a better future but find themselves deported due to immigration challenges. They return with shattered hopes, financial distress, and ...

Over 7,000 student exchange visitors from India overstayed in US in 2023

Over 7,000 student and exchange visitors from India overstayed in the US in 2023, an expert told US lawmakers and suggested several reforms in the country's immigration policies, including those related to H-1B visas. As many as 32 countries have student/exchange visitor overstay rates of higher than 20 per cent, Jessica M Vaughan from the Center for Immigration Studies told the US House Committee on the Judiciary during a hearing on Restoring Immigration Enforcement in America. The F and M visa categories have the highest overstay rates of any of the broad categories of temporary admission. The F-1 Visa allows a person to enter the United States as a full-time student at an accredited college, university, seminary, conservatory, academic high school, elementary school, or other academic institution or in a language training programme. The M-1 visa category includes students in vocational or other nonacademic programmes, other than language training. Four countries -- Brazil, Chin

Indian man gets 30-month prison term in US for customs duty evasion

An Indian man who ran jewellery companies in New York has been sentenced to 30 months in prison for evading customs duty for importing jewellery worth more than USD 13.5 million and for illegally processing over USD 10.3 million through an unlicensed money transmitting business, a US attorney said. Acting US Attorney Vikas Khanna said Monishkumar Kirankumar Doshi Shah (4O) of Mumbai and Jersey City, New Jersey, previously pleaded guilty before US District Judge Esther Salas to a two-count information, charging him with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and operating and aiding and abetting the operation of an unlicensed money transmitting business. In addition to the prison term, the judge ordered restitution in the amount of USD 742,500 for the wire fraud scheme and forfeiture of USD 11,126,982.33 for the wire fraud and unlicensed money transmitting schemes. Additionally, the court imposed a two-year term of supervised release. According to court documents, from around December 2019

Sriram Krishnan faces racism post-Trump role, Elon Musk offers support

The American far-right accused Krishnan and other Indian Americans of "stealing jobs from Americans" and questioned the high-skilled immigration through the H-1B program

86 Indians attacked or murdered in various countries in 2023: Centre

Eighty-six Indian nationals were attacked or murdered in various countries in 2023, the government informed the Parliament on Thursday. Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh shared the data in a written response to a query. In his response, he shared country-wise data for the the last three years. The figures were -- 29 in 2021, 57 in 2022 and 86 in 2023. In 2023, out of the 86 Indian nationals who were attacked or murdered, the figures for the US stood at 12, while it was 10 each for Canada, the UK and Saudi Arabia, as per the data shared. "The safety and security of Indians abroad is one of the foremost priorities for the government of India. Our Missions and Posts remain vigilant and closely monitor any untoward incident. Such incidents are immediately taken up with the concerned authorities of the host country to ensure that the cases are properly investigated and the perpetrators are punished," he said. These issues are also raised during meetings with t

US charges Indian for conspiring illegal export of aviation parts to Russia

The US has charged a 57-year-old Indian national for allegedly conspiring to export controlled US aviation components to end users in Russia, according to the Justice Department. Sanjay Kaushik was arrested in Miami on October 17 and was indicted on Thursday, the Department of Justice said in a press release on Friday. He was indicted for conspiring to illegally export aviation components with dual civilian and military applications to end users in Russia in violation of the Export Control Reform Act. Kaushik is also charged with attempting to illegally export a navigation and flight control system from Oregon to Russia through India and with making false statements in connection with an export. If convicted, he faces maximum penalties of 20 years in prison and up to USD 1 million for each count in the indictment. According to the court documents, beginning as early as March 2023, following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Kaushik conspired with others to unlawfully obtain

Men prioritised money over life leading to deaths of Indians: US prosecutor

Nearly three years after a couple from India and their two young children froze to death while trying to cross the border from Canada into the US, two men went on trial Monday on human smuggling charges, accused of being part of a criminal network that stretched around the world. Prosecutors say Indian national Harshkumar Ramanlal Patel (29) ran part of the scheme and recruited Steve Shand (50) of Florida to shuttle migrants across the border. Both men have pleaded not guilty in federal court in Minnesota. They're standing trial before US District Judge John Tunheim, with proceedings expected to last about five days. They each face four counts related to human smuggling. On January 19, 2022, Shand was allegedly waiting in a truck for 11 migrants, including the family of four from the village of Dingucha in Gujarat state. Prosecutors say 39-year-old Jagdish Patel; his wife, Vaishaliben, who was in her mid-30s; the couple's 11-year-old daughter, Vihangi; and three-year-old son, Dharmik

From FY21 to FY23, US sees a dramatic 855% surge in Indian asylum seekers

In 2023, Indians were the fifth-largest group to seek defensive asylum and the seventh-largest in affirmative asylum applications

Indian community has distinguished itself in USA positively: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived at Philadelphia International Airport on Saturday morning (local time) on the first day of his three day visit to the United States

Opportunity for Indian students: Apply for US internships via this portal

The Consulate General of India (CGI) in New York has launched a dedicated platform for you to find internship opportunities

Overseas friends of BJP to celebrate PM Modi's victory in 22 US cities

Supporters of Prime Minister Narendra Modi are planning to celebrate his third swearing-in in 22 cities across the United States, a senior leader from Overseas Friends of BJP-USA has said. The celebrations in cities, including New York, Jersey City, Washington DC, Boston, Tampa, Atlanta, Houston, Dallas, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, would be spread over the current and the coming weekends. Victory celebrations will be held from this Friday to next Sunday in 22 cities in the US, OFBJP-USA President Adapa Prasad told PTI on Friday. During the election campaign, OFBJP-USA and its members conducted several awareness campaigns in various American cities that ranged from car rallies to calling people in India. The BJP is the largest party in Lok Sabha, and this is the first time since 1962 that a prime minister has been voted to power for the third consecutive term. Prime Minister Modi is set to take oath for a third consecutive term, a first in over 60 years. This is a his

National Spelling Bee: Reflection of Indian immigrants at global stage

When Balu Natarajan became the first Indian American champion of the Scripps National Spelling Bee in 1985, a headline on an Associated Press article read, Immigrants' son wins National Spelling Bee, with the first paragraph noting the champion speaks his parents' native Indian language at home. Those details would hardly be newsworthy today after a quarter-century of Indian American spelling champs, most of them the offspring of parents who arrived in the United States on student or work visas. This year's bee is scheduled to begin Tuesday at a convention centre outside Washington and, as usual, many of the expected contenders are Indian American, including Shradha Rachamreddy, Aryan Khedkar, Bruhat Soma and Ishika Varipilli. Nearly 70 per cent of Indian-born US residents arrived after 2000, according to census data, and that dovetails with the surge in Indian American spelling bee champions. There were two Indian American Scripps winners before 1999. Of the 34 since, 28 have been

26-year-old Indian student missing in Chicago since May 2: Police

A 26-year-old Indian student has been reported missing in Chicago since May 2, India's mission in the US city said on Thursday, the latest case in the country as the community grapples with a string of such incidents involving students. Rupesh Chandra Chintakindi has been missing from the 4300 block of N. Sheridan Rd, the Chicago Police said in a statement. The Consulate General of India in Chicago said it was in touch with the police and Indian diaspora to locate/reestablish contact with Rupesh. "The Consulate is deeply concerned learning that Indian student Rupesh Chandra Chintakindi has been incommunicado since 2nd May. The consulate is in touch with the police and the Indian diaspora hoping to locate/reestablish contact with Rupesh. @IndianEmbassyUS @MEAIndia," the Consulate posted on X. On May 6, the Chicago police in a statement asked people to provide information to the police if they locate Rupesh. The incident is the latest in a string of troubling cases on the safety an

Nearly 66,000 Indians took oath of American citizenship in 2022: CRS report

As many as 65,960 Indians officially became US citizens, making India the second-largest source country for new citizens in America after Mexico, according to a latest Congressional report. An estimated 46 million foreign-born persons resided in the United States in 2022, approximately 14 per cent of the total US population of 333 million, according to American Community Survey data from the US Census Bureau. Of these, 24.5 million, about 53 per cent, reported their status as naturalised citizens. In its latest US Naturalisation Policy report of April 15, the independent Congressional Research Service in the fiscal year 2022, 969,380 individuals became naturalised US citizens. Individuals born in Mexico represented the largest number of naturalisations, followed by persons from India, Philippines, Cuba, and the Dominican Republic, it said. Based on the latest available data, CRS said in 2022, as many as 128,878, Mexican nationals became American citizens. They were followed by Ind

Resolution tabled in US Cong condemning attacks on Hindu places of worship

Celebrating the contributions of Hindus and Hinduism to the US, a prominent Indian-American Congressman has introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives condemning Hinduphobia, anti-Hindu bigotry, hate and intolerance. The resolution that was introduced by Congressman Shri Thanedar on Wednesday has been referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability. The resolution reads that despite their positive contributions to the United States, Hindu Americans face stereotypes and disinformation about their heritage and symbols, and have been the targets of bullying in schools and on college campuses, as well as discrimination, hate speech, and bias-motivated crimes. According to the FBI's Hate Crimes Statistics Report, anti-Hindu hate crimes targeting mandirs and persons are annually on the rise while in parallel Hinduphobia in American society is unfortunately rising, the resolution said. Noting that the United States has welcomed more than four million Hindus f

Ex-PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi advises Indian students in US to be 'watchful'

Nooyi advised Indian students to respect local laws and not engage in drugs or excessive drinking

Matrimony.com launches mobile dating app for Indians living in US

Matchmaking service provider Matrimony.com has launched its exclusive dating mobile application 'MeraLuv' aimed at serving the Indian nationals living in the United States. The application has robust safety mechanism prioritising user privacy and each profile undergoes rigorous verification towards providing a secure environment for the users, the company said in a statement on Thursday. "As the population of Indians in the US continues to rise, we discovered that there is a need for them to connect with individuals who resonate with their values, lifestyle and aspirations. MeraLuv is poised to help them find a match within the diaspora," said company founder-CEO Murugavel Janakiraman. The application has been launched after extensive research and consultation with the members of the Indian community and serves to address the gap in the market, the release added.