In order to strengthen intercultural ties, the US will open two new consulates in Bengaluru and Ahmedabad, and India will open a mission in Seattle, a senior White House official announced today.
1,25,000 visas for Indian students were issued by the US in 2017—a record, according to the official. With a 20% growth in enrollment just last year, the top administration official predicted that Indian students will soon overtake Chinese students as the country’s largest foreign student population.
The US plans to establish new consulates in Ahmedabad and Bengaluru. The inauguration of India’s consulate in Seattle in 2023 is also welcomed, and the country looks forward to announcing the opening of a new consulate in the United States, the official said.
Later this year, the US Department of State will begin a trial programme to decide domestic renewals of some petition-based temporary work visas, including those for Indian nationals, with the intention of expanding the pool for whom this programme would be used, the official added.
In addition to its embassy in Washington, India has five consulates in the US, located in New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Houston, and Atlanta.
One of the biggest US diplomatic posts worldwide is the embassy in New Delhi. According to the information on its website, the embassy manages the activities of four consulates, located in Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, and Hyderabad, to ensure that the US-India connection remains robust throughout the nation.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Joe Biden are establishing new collaborations in the defense, semiconductor manufacturing, and other sectors to commemorate the state visit of the Indian leader on Thursday. The leaders want to improve their nations’ essential, if complex, relationships.
The Democratic president’s decision to bestow such a high honour on a leader whose nine-year tenure over the largest democracy in the world has been marked by a decline in political, religious, and press freedoms is being questioned by human rights groups and some U.S. politicians as Biden honours Modi.
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