The Hindu : Front Page : “Two million Indians constitute the best immigrant community in U.S.”

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Wednesday, Aug 13, 2008
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“Two million Indians constitute the best immigrant community in U.S.”

Special Correspondent

Acting Consul-General launches SRM University’s Semester Abroad programme

— Photo: A.Muralitharan

Interaction: Frederick J.Kaplan, Acting Consul-General, US Consulate, Chennai, in discussion with students at a function in SRM University, Kattankulathur, on Tuesday. P.Sathyanarayanan, Vice-Chancellor of the University, is in the picture.

TAMBARAM: In a few years from now, 10 lakh visas will be issued to Indians leaving for the United States of America, Frederick J.Kaplan, Acting Consul-General , US Consulate, Chennai, said on Tuesday.

He was speaking at the launch of the Semester Abroad Programme of SRM University in Kattankulathur in which the second batch of 41 students of the institution would soon leave for various universities in the U.S., United Kingdom, France, Germany and Japan to spend an entire semester.

Mr. Kaplan said “7.6 lakh visas are being issued every year and in a few years from now, we would be issuing 10 lakh visas every year.” Indians constituted the largest community among foreign students in the US and there were 83,000 of them, he pointed out.

“Indians perform brilliantly in engineering, medicine, business and increasingly in the humanities,” he remarked.

Citing a study by Duke University, Mr. Kaplan said that more than one in seven “start-ups” in Silicon Valley was founded by an immigrant from India. More than two million Indian Americans in US constituted the best educated and wealthiest immigrant community in the country.

He said Bobby Jindal, an Indian American, was recently elected as Governor of Louisiana and is now being discussed as a “possible candidate for Vice President as John McCain’s running mate.”

As barriers to trade and investment came down, what mattered to American business was a hard working and well educated labour force, capable management, political stability and rule of law and all of these existed in India, Mr. Kaplan said.

V.Bhaskar, who captained the Indian hockey team to a gold medal at the 1980 Moscow Olympics, said Abhinav Bindra’s triumph was inspiring. “Since 1980 there have been talks of why India was unable to produce a gold medal though it had a population of one billion and Abhinav Bindra’s success has put an end to that drought,” he said, adding that the shooter’s feat would be an inspiration to athletes and youth in the country.

P.Sathyanarayanan, Vice-Chancellor, said the university spent Rs.1.5 crore on sending the first two batches of the students to the foreign universities. T.R.Pachamuthu, Chancellor and staff of the university spoke.

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