The US is set to introduce in-country renewable H-1B visas, a significant decision that would help thousands of Indian professionals in staying in the country to continue with their jobs without the hassle of travelling overseas for the renewal of their work visas. This is part of the people-to-people initiative, a senior administration official said ahead of the bilateral meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Joe Biden at the White House here on Thursday. The much-sought-after H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. Technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China. The United States last year issued 125,000 visas to Indian students, which is a record and they are on pace to become the largest foreign student community in the United States with a 20 per cent increase last ye
Large crowds of the Indian diaspora on Thursday gathered at the South Lawns of the White House under an overcast sky as ceremonial music played ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's arrival here for his official welcome. Officials said anywhere between 2,000-3,000 persons are expected to witness the ceremonial welcome being given to Modi, who is on his first state visit to the US. A drizzle was no dampener to the enthusiasm of the members of the diaspora, many of whom travelled overnight from different parts of the US, as they waved the flag of the two countries and raised slogans. "What a great sight it is. It is like a festival," Hitesh Shah, who came from Boston, said. Slogans like 'Vande Mataram', 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' and 'Modi, Modi' went up the air amid a mood of cheer. Prime Minister Modi arrived here on Wednesday on the second leg of his maiden state visit to the US during which he will hold bilateral talks with President Joe Biden and address a joint session of the US .
Leading fertiliser cooperative Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Ltd (IFFCO) on Thursday said it has signed an agreement with California-based Kapoor Enterprises Inc for export of nano liquid urea to the US. The agreement was signed on June 21 in the backdrop of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the US. "IFFCO now started exporting ...nano liquid urea to the USA," the cooperative said in a statement. IFFCO, however, did not provide any details about the quantity and value of the contract it has bagged from Kapoor Enterprises. Currently, the cooperative is exporting more than 5 lakh bottles of nano liquid urea to more than 25 countries. In June 2021, IFFCO launched the world's first nano urea fertiliser, while nano DAP in April this year. A 500-mililitre bottle of IFFCO nano urea liquid will replace at least one bag of conventional urea. The bottle can significantly bring down the cost of logistics and warehousing, the cooperative said. IFFCO has already sold more than
The Indus-X seeks to "expand the strategic technology partnership and defence industrial cooperation" between US and India
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Joe Biden will on Thursday announce a mega deal on the purchase of General Atomics MQ-9 "Reaper" armed drones by India, the White House has said, a move which would further bolster India's national security and surveillance capabilities not only in the Indian Ocean but also along the frontier with China. The General Atomics MQ-9 "Reaper" can carry 500 per cent more payload and has nine times the horsepower in comparison to the earlier MQ-1 Predator. Moreover, MQ-9 UAV provides long-endurance, persistent surveillance, and strike capability for the warfighter. The General Atomics MQ-9 "Reaper" has an endurance of over 27 hours, speeds of 240 KTAS, can operate up to 50,000 feet, and has a 3,850 pound (1,746 kilogrammes) payload capacity that includes 3,000 pounds (1,361 kilogrammes) of external stores, according to General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI). With regards to the Sea Guardian, Yes. I think that's going to be announced by t
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday paid tributes to the fallen UN peacekeepers at the Wall of Peace at the UN headquarters here and asserted that their selfless service will never be forgotten. Modi was in New York to lead a yoga session celebrating the 9th International Day of Yoga at the UN headquarters. The prime minister is on an official state visit to the US at the invitation of President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden. Modi took to Twitter and said, "Humbled to pay my tributes at the Wall of Peace at the @UN HQ today. We honor and remember the brave peacekeepers who gave their lives for a more peaceful world. Their selfless service will never be forgotten." Earlier this month, the UN General Assembly adopted a draft resolution introduced by India to establish a memorial wall in the UN Headquarters to honour fallen peacekeepers. Modi, who was here on the first leg of his maiden state visit to the US, also paid respects to the bust of Mahatma Gandhi in the North L
After seeking a delay in the Asian Games trials, the protesting wrestlers, including Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia, have now written to the Sports Ministry that they want to train in Michigan, US to prepare for the trials. The wrestlers had earlier requested the Sports Ministry to push the trials to the month of August as they needed enough time to be in good physical and mental shape ahead of the trials. "They have written directly to Sports Minister Anurag Thakur. The minister has forwarded the request to the Mission Olympic Cell (MOC), which is yet to discuss the issue," a Sports Ministry source told PTI. "Vinesh, Bajrang, Sakshi Malik, Satyawart Kadian and Sangeeta Phogat have written the letter," he added. The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) has to submit the names of all the participating athletes to Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) by July 15 and thus the ad-hoc panel needs to conduct trials before that. The IOA has approached the OCA to extend the deadline to accommodate t
Google spokesperson Jose Castaneda said on Wednesday that the company was disappointed with the verdict and plans to appeal
The FTC has been investigating sign-up and cancellation processes for the Prime program since March 2021
The United States is the third largest source of foreign investment for India, with over $60 billion invested between 2000 and 2023, according to official data
Joe Biden said Xi Jinping was embarrassed after an alleged Chinese spy balloon was shot down by the US
PM Modi is in the United States for his historic State visit at the invitation of US President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden
The two delegations then faced each other across a long conference table bedecked with pink lotus flowers, with Xi at the head and Blinken just to his right
PM Modi's state visit to the United States will commence on June 21 with his arrival in New York
The acquisition of iRobot would not disadvantage Amazon's rival 'smart home' platforms
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's State Visit to the US will have "significant outcomes", External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Saturday. Interacting with reporters on the sidelines of a function here, he also said that it will be the first time that an Indian prime minister will be addressing the US Congress twice. Prime Minister Modi is visiting the US from June 21-24 at the invitation of President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden. They will host Modi at a State Dinner on June 22. The visit also includes an address to the Joint Session of the Congress on June 22. "The prime minister is going on a State Visit, which signifies the highest level of honour. So, the honour that he will receive, has been accorded to a very few people, so far," Jaishankar said after the function that was held at Badarpur in South Delhi as part of the BJP's mega outreach campaign -- 'Sampark se Samarthan' -- to mark the completion of the nine years of the Modi government. "The prime minister wil
The attackers used the wooden butts of Khalistan flags, which they had been waving earlier, to smash the glass doors and windows of the Consulate
The massive federal effort to expand internet access to every home in the U.S. took a major step forward on Friday with the announcement of $930 million in grants to shore up connections in remote parts of Alaska, rural Texas and dozens of other places where significant gaps in connectivity persist. The so-called middle mile grants, announced by the Department of Commerce, are meant to create large-scale networks that will enable retail broadband providers to link subscribers to the internet. Department officials likened the role of the middle mile the midsection of the infrastructure necessary to enable internet access, composed of high-capacity fibre lines carrying huge amounts of data at very high speeds to how the interstate highway system forged connections between communities. These networks are the workhorses carrying large amounts of data over very long distances, said Mitch Landrieu, the White House's infrastructure coordinator, in a media Zoom call. They're the ones tha
A concerted large hacking campaign, which began two weeks ago, has hit major universities and state and local governments across the US
With roughly a year and a half until the 2024 presidential contest, the field of candidates is largely set. Former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis have dominated the early Republican race as the other candidates look for an opening to take them on. President Joe Biden faces a couple of Democratic challengers but is expected to secure his party's nomination. Here's a look at the candidates competing for the Republican and Democratic nominations: REPUBLICAN PRIMARY FIELD DONALD TRUMP The former president announced his third campaign for the White House on November 15 at his Mar-a-Lago resort, forcing the party to again decide whether to embrace a candidate whose refusal to accept defeat in 2020 sparked the US Capitol attack and still dominates his speeches. The GOP front-runner remains hugely popular in the Republican Party, despite making history as the first president to be impeached twice and inciting the Capitol insurrection on January 6, 2021. In March,