The Sikh Religious Society hosted a two-day Mool Nanakshahi Calendar Implementation Conference in Palatine, Illinois, Nov. 11 and 12, attracting speakers and guests from various Sikh organizations in the United States, Canada, India, and Australia.
The focus of the conference was how to preserve the unique Sikh heritage and prepare the Panth for the next millennia, according to a press release from Asian Media USA. Knowledgeable speakers explained the history and importance of the Mool Nanakshahi Calendar. Sardar Pal Singh Purewal, the brain behind the Calendar, spoke about the practicality of the calendar and emphasized how important it is for next generations to adopt it.
Bibi Jasbir Kaur of Ohio, threw light on the need to pass on the heritage to the next generation to secure Sikh identity; the importance of kids to understand Gurbani and apply it in their daily life. Other speakers at the conference were S. Sarabjit Singh of Sacramento, Prof. Niranjan Singh Dhesi, S. Surinder Singh of Talking Punjab, and Harkirat Singh Ajnoha from Australia.
Speakers stressed the role of the overseas Sikh community in accomplishing this mission. One presentation explained how the Calendar works and helps maintain the consistency of Sikh observations like Gurpurabs, Vaisakhi and so on. Accurate recurrence of these Sikh historical dates and preservation of Gurbani’s relevance has profound implications for future generations, speakers observed. The Mool Nanakshahi Calendar forever fixed drifting Sikh historical Bikrami dates and synchronized these dates with the Common Era (CE) tropical calendar.
The resolutions passed at the conference entailed that, in 1999, the Sikh scholars and Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, SGPC, introduced the Mool Nanakshahi Calendar on the 300th anniversary of Khalsa’s Saajna conforming to Gurbani.
Many Sikh organizations have already been following the Nanakshahi Calendar for many years, except for the three dates of Guru Nanak’s Gurpurab, Bandee Chhorrd Divas, and Holla-Muhalla. The Chicago conference emphasized that everyone fully adopt and forever follow The Mool Nanakshahi Calendar and its methodology to observe Sikh historical events on the following fixed dates for the three occasions:
1. Guru Nanak’s Parkaash Purab on April 14th (1-Vaisaakh), Vaisaakhi
2. Bandee Chhorrd Divas on February 12th (1-Phaggan)
3. Holla Muhalla on March 14th (1-Chet), Mool Nanakshahi New Year Day
Heeding the call of the conference for unity, many Midwest gurdwaras also adopted these resolutions simultaneously, according to the press release.
The Consulate General of India, Chicago in partnership with the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin celebrated 350th birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh Ji on Nov. 19.
The event was attended by about 500 devotees and particularly poignant as it was held at the Oak Creek Gurdwara in Wisconsin, the site of the terrible tragedy on Aug. 5, 2012, when a white supremacist massacred several members of the congregation.
At the solemn ceremonies, the Shabad Kirtan by Bhai Gurmail Singh Ji was followed by Katha recitation by Bhai Harjinder Singh Ji, Kirtan by Bhai Surjit Singh Ji and Ardaas Prayers, and langar.
Consul General Neeta Bhushan delivered the keynote address emphasizing the greatness of Guru Gobind Singh ji as a great leader who sacrificed his whole family for the sake of his belief and convictions as well as for his community, a press release from the consulate said.
He was a true nation builder and remains an exemplary example of courage in the face of crisis, Bhushan said. Guru Gobind Singh molded the Sikh religion into its present shape, with the institution of the Khalsa fraternity, and completion of the sacred scripture, the Guru Granth Sahib, in the final form found today.
The Consul General thanked the Gurdwara management Committee for the cooperation extended to the Consulate for organizing the event.
Sherin Mathews, of Richardson, Texas, is missing after disappearing Saturday morning. She had been sent outside at 3 a.m. as punishment for not drinking her milk. (Richardson Police Department)
The four-year-old sister of adopted Indian-American toddler Sherin Mathews, who died in “questionable circumstances,” has been taken out of foster care after six weeks and is now living with “family in the Houston-area,” according to WFAA news.
The girl’s parents were both arrested in Sherin’s unexpected death in early October.
As reported by News India Times earlier, Wesley Mathews was arrested after he admitted to police that he had dumped the child’s body in an open drain, when Sherin choked on her milk while he “physically assisted” her. The foster mother, Sini Mathews was later arrested after detectives alleged Sherin was left alone while the foster parents went to dinner with their biological daughter, the night before Sherin went “missing.”
The couple adopted Sherin from India last year but according to news reports, were unaware of the “developmental issues” she had. The 3-year old toddler’s body was discovered by police on October 22 in a culvert less than a mile away from the Mathews’ family home.
According to a Blasting News report, a Child Protective Services (CPS) representative said that a judge decided the four-year-old sister could leave foster care. Following the judgment, the biological daughter of the parents who are in prison, was “transported” to a relative’s home.
Child Protective Services removed the olde child from her biological family’s home on October 9, two days after Sherin was reported missing.
Marissa Gonzales, a spokeswoman for Texas’ Department of Family and Protective Services, was quoted saying that a home study was conducted prior to the older sister leaving foster care.
Gonzales also stated that CPS does permit parents who are locked up to have visitation with their children. But if the little girl’s mother posts bond and is released from jail then CPS may ask the judge to have restricted “visitation rights.”
The Richardson Police department is still awaiting the findings of the cause of Sherin’s death from the Dallas County Medical Examiner’s Office and depending on the results, charges could be modified.
NBC 5 reported that the next custody hearing with CPS is scheduled for November 29.
Rukmini Kalamangalam, a high school student who is also cultural arts advisor on Houston Mayor’s Youth Council. won the city’s 2017-2018 Youth Poet Laureate title after submitting a poem entitled “After Harvey,” in the competition.
A senior at the Carnegie Vanguard High School, Kalamangalam becomes the first Indian-American to win the prize, and only the third youth poet laurete since the program began. The contest is a partnership between the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs, Houston Public Library and Writers in the Schools.
According to the Huston Chronicle, the event was held at The Astorian in Houston and raised nearly $200,000.
In attendance were previous winners Andrew White, 21, a graduate of the High School for Performing and Visual Arts and student at New York University; and Fareena Arefeen, 17, who attends HSPVA.
Kalamangalam was born in U.S., where her parents met in graduate school, according to Houstonisd.org blog site. She immigrated to the United States from India when she was 6-years-old. She submitted a collection of poems and was chosen from dozens of applicants in a tough competition, where the final five were interviewed by a panel of judges.
“I would like to establish a space where young poets and other artists can collaborate and share their experiences,” she is quoted saying on a houstonisd.org blog. “I would also like to start a column in a local publication where students can publish their favorite poems, and I would like to implement poetry readings in public places where people gather.”
“I tend to write about feminism, like what it means to be a feminist as a South Asian woman. For me, it’s about the question of identity, who I am as an Indian American who still has sort of a strange accent and how I fit in with the different societies I’m exposed to,” Kalamangalam told the Huston chronicle. One of her poems focused on a Pakistani social media star who was strangled by her brother in an “honor” killing in 2016 because of her provocative selfies and videos.
Kalamangalam said that she discovered poetry in middle school when her mother took her to a performance of Meta-Four Houston, an award-winning youth spoken-word or “slam” poetry team that’s a part of Writers in the Schools.
Slam poems are generally acted out with vocal inflections and body movements, unlike traditional poetry.
“I fell in love with slam poetry. It’s the intersection of art and action. At slam-poetry events, you definitely see people talking about issues of injustice and how they want society to progress. I think that is really amazing the way audiences react to something that can spark change and spark progress,’ she told the Huston Chronicle.
In ninth grade, she was able to attend the Brave New Voices international poetry-slam competition in Atlanta where she saw young poets using their poems to talk about injustice and oppression, for the first time.
Kalamangalam told the Houston Chronicle that her dream is to become a lawyer who makes the world a better place through her poetry.
‘AFTER HARVEY’
By: Rukmini Kalamangalam
The first rain after the hurricane
We held our breath
Tried not to imagine what it would feel like to be drowning again
So soon after the taste of stolen air
Replaced the salty breathlessness of rising tides
The first rain after the hurricane
We were ready before the flash-flood warning, already watching as
Water lapped at the curb
Feasted on the rotted remains of gutted houses
Tried to wash away the evidence of its crimes
The first rain after the hurricane
We saw a pack of wild dogs at CVS
Snarling and slavering in red wellington boots
They watched us with hungry eyes
Snouts sniffing the air for threats from the sky & each other
The first rain after the hurricane,
The water washed away as quick as it had come
Leaving streets dark & empty &
Water still priced 3.99 a gallon
We scoured the clouds for signs of false promises
The first rain after the hurricane,
We tethered our homes together,
Waited to become chains of floating memories
Prayed for a second chance at survival,
Our heads still bowed as the rain evaporated, leaving only stillness behind
(170215) — WASHINGTON, Feb. 15, 2017 (Xinhua) — Ivanka Trump arrives for a joint press conference between U.S. President Donald Trump and visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in Washington D.C., the United States, on Feb. 15, 2017. Israel should “hold back” on building new settlement “for a little bit,” U.S. President Donald Trump told visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu)
A 44-year-old Indian American woman, who is also a U.S. green card holder, is one of the beggars being summoned to leave on the streets of Hyderabad.
According to a Times Now report, the woman became a beggar after her relatives cheated her out of her share of the ancestral property.
The city of Hyderabad is currently removing all of the beggars from the street and placing them at Anand Ashrams or “special homes” prior to Ivanka Trump’s visit next week.
“Two women, aged 50 and 44, both natives of Hyderabad, were among some 30 women caught begging near a dargah in Langer Houz. Police took them to Anand Ashram on November 11,” a senior official told Times Now.
The second woman happens to have an MBA degree and has worked as an accountant in London, “lost her husband and was facing certain problems, approached a godman, and on his advice started begging near the dargah. Her son is an architect based in the US,” K. Arjun Rao, the superintendent of the Cherlapalli open-air jail and the head of the Ashram, told Times Now.
“After taking undertakings (that they would not beg again) from them, we handed over both women to their relatives,” the official added, but there are still some 12 women in the Ashram.
The Times Now report mentions that the Telangana Prisons Department along with the police and the civic body has already caught and shifted 235 male beggars and more than 130 women beggars to Anand Ashrams since October 20 as a part of a drive to make Hyderabad a beggar-free city.
The report further stated that the drive began after VK Singh, the Director General of Prisons and Correctional Services, told the government that the prison department would take care of the rehabilitation of beggars, but the drive was postponed after it was noted that Ivanka Trump, daughter of President Donald Trump, was going to be visiting the city for the Global Entrepreneurship Summit on November 28 and so the drive will resume later, Singh added.
The Global Entrepreneurship Summit 2017 is being hosted by India along with the U.S. in efforts to maintain their “strong friendship.”
Ivanka is expected to be heading to Indian after Thanksgiving.
The Indian American family of Inderjeet Singh, was forced to temporarily abandon their home in San Jose, California after dwellers in a homeless encampment set fire to the house.
Singh told KRON4 news that he tried to put out the flames which fumed along their fence line, with water.
According to the report, three sections of the fence were burned down in the incident.
Singh said that him and his wife Gagan, fled to their car with their nine-month-old baby in hand.
“We just left and stayed in the car for about two to three hours. It was a scary moment for us,” Singh told KRON4.
“I was really worried about my baby because we got her after nine years of struggle and she’s really precious for us,” Singh’s wife Gagan added.
According to KRON4, a video clip shows a person pouring propane onto the refuse in the encampment, which is situated in an alley behind Singh’s home.
Although the property is owned, city officials have not managed to contact the owner to clear out homeless people from the site.
KRON4 frurther reports that homelessness in San Jose is on the rise, as the average rent of a one-bedroom apartment, lists for $2,600 a month and the median home price averages out to around $700,000.
According to data from the federally-required biennial “Point-in-Time Homeless Census and Survey,” released by Santa Clara County in June, the homeless population in the county rose by 13 percent from January of last year to January of this year, with a total of 7,394 people.
KRON4 states that the Singhs will have to pay out of pocket for the restoration of their fence line.
At least half a dozen fires have appeared in a similar manner over the past couple of months.
An Indian-American man from Glastonbury, Connecticut, has been charged in connection with the death of his one-year old son, in what appears to be a conflicting story still being investigated by police.
Divya Patel, 34, faces charges of risk of injury to a minor and tampering with evidence in connection with his son’s death. He also faces a child endangerment charge for failing to seek medical care when he discovered his 1-month-old son cold to the touch. He is being held on a $1 million bail. The investigation continues and Patel is due back in court on Dec. 5, according to the Hartford Courant.
According to the Courant, prosecutor Evelyn Rojas told New Britain Superior Court Judge Joan K. Alexander that there was about a five-hour delay between when Patel told the baby’s mother that the baby had stopped breathing and when police were able to track down Patel and the baby in Rocky Hill. Despite the mother’s pleas, Patel never sought medical aid for his son, Ayaan Patel, Rojas said.
The Hartford Courant describes a series of events which show the father allegedly did not take the child to the nearest hospital. The results from the post-mortem are still awaited and the cause of death will not be determined for a few weeks according to the medical examiner, the report says.
At about 11 p.m. Friday, Nov. 17, the baby’s mother called 911 and reported that she and Patel were arguing and that Patel had left her at a gas station on Tolland Turnpike in Manchester.
She then told police that Patel was drunk and had the baby in the car and might be headed to his parents’ house in Rocky Hill.
But both Manchester and Rocky Hill police were not able to find Patel.
Next day, the mother again called police in the evening saying Patel had called her to say the child had thrown up and was not breathing. She said Patel told her that he was at the Subway restaurant his family owns at 2858 Main St. in Glastonbury and that they should meet at the Residence Inn in Rocky Hill.
Glastonbury police checked the restaurant, but did not find Patel there.
Rocky Hill police also went to the Residence Inn and found the girlfriend, who was on the phone with Patel at the time. A Rocky Hill officer took the phone from her and spoke with Patel, who refused to disclose where he was.
Rocky Hill police began searching for Patel. A little later an officer went back to the Residence Inn and found Patel’s car in a back lot where he found Patel, his girlfriend, his wife and the baby.
The officer asked if everything was OK and they said “yes,” but the officer then checked the baby and found that he was not breathing and was also cold to the touch, the Courant reported.
The officer began CPR and the baby was taken to Connecticut Children’s Medical Center in
Hartford, where he was pronounced dead.
According to the police arrest report on which the Courant’s account is based, Patel and his girlfriend, the baby’s mother, had been staying in motels around the greater Hartford area for the past month. The baby was born about a month premature on Oct. 19 at St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center in Hartford and had jaundice at the time of birth.
Patel’s account talks about sleeping with the infant on the motel’s queen-size bed, Nov. 18 night, feeding him at 4 a.m., and falling asleep, only to find the baby not stirring when he woke up at 9:45 am. Many hours later, in the afternoon, Patel told police he put the baby in his car carrier and in the car, driving him to East Hartford/Manchester area, and noticed the child was not making any noise.
“Patel said he reached into the back seat and touched Ayaan’s head,” the report reads. “Patel said Ayaan was cold to the touch. Patel said he knew right away something was wrong so he pulled over on the side of the highway. Patel said he got out to check on [the baby] and noticed he was not breathing.” Patel told police he performed CPR on the baby and a clear liquid came out of his mouth and when detectives asked Patel if he had ever thought of calling 911, he said “he thought about bringing Ayaan to St. Francis Hospital, but he knew it was too late and there was nothing anyone could do for Ayaan.”
At a sold-out event, the Association of Indian Pharmacists held its annual banquet and a Business Expo Nov. 11, at the Meadows Club in Rolling Meadows, Illinois, strengthening network opportunities, celebrating Diwali and the holiday season with members and their families.
The event included a social hour, speeches by guests and executive committee members of AIPHA, a gourmet dinner and raffles, and entertainment by Babra and party, according to a press release from AIPHA. Harish Bhatt, lifelong president of AIPHA officiated over the event.
Encouraging entrepreneurs to set up new manufacturing plants in India, Debandhu Bhati from the Indian Consulate pointed to the expected high annual growth of the pharmaceutical industry which could be further influenced by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Made by India’ goal. Rupesh Manek, AIPHA executive director and board member of the National Indian Pharmacist Association (NIPA), encouraged all pharmacists in Illinois get involved and become members of NIPA. Nineteen states in the U.S. are already in the NIPA fold, he added.
Bhatt elaborated on the achievements of AIPHA, and thanked members for contributing to strengthening the organization.
Other notable attendees included Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Illinois; Nikki Budzinski, senior advisor to J.B. Pritzker, Democratic candidate for Illinois governor, among others. Bhatt argued against “over-regulation” of the industry, contending that “Insurance companies have been given freedom to create regulations outside of already existing state-level requirements, manufacturing a new fleet of limitations.” He dwelt on other issues confronting the pharmaceutical industry and pharmacies.
The Association of Indian Pharmacists of America is an organization dedicated to increasing cultural awareness and promoting diversity through various pharmaceutical services, promotional, and social events, the press release said.
Darbrett Black of Texas, a suspect in the shooting of a Texas state trooper, is pictured in this undated handout photo obtained by Reuters November 23, 2017. Navarro County OEM/Handout via REUTERS
A Texas state trooper was shot and killed during a traffic stop on Thanksgiving Day, leading to a manhunt and further gunfire some 125 miles (200 km) away, where the suspect was arrested.
The fatal shooting took place on Thursday in Fairfield, about 90 miles (145 km) south of Dallas, where highway patrol trooper Damon Allen had stopped the suspect for a traffic violation and made contact with the driver, a Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) spokesman said.
When Allen returned to his patrol car, the suspect fired multiple times with a rifle, killing the trooper at the scene, Lieutenant Lonny Haschel said in a statement.
Allen, 41, was a husband and father of three who joined the department in 2002, the department said.
“Our DPS family is heartbroken tonight after one of Texas’ finest law enforcement officers was killed in the line of duty,” DPS Director Steven McCraw said in a statement.
“Trooper Allen’s dedication to duty, and his bravery and selfless sacrifice on this Thanksgiving Day, will never be forgotten,” McCraw said.
The suspect, identified as Dabrett Black, 32, was arrested in Waller County, about 50 miles northwest of Houston, after unspecified shots had been fired, the Waller County Sheriff’s Office said on Facebook.
DPS officials said they would file capital murder charges against Black, meaning prosecutors could potentially seek the death penalty in a state that has executed 518 people in the past 38 years.
In Waller County, sheriff’s deputies and a Texas DPS helicopter pursued the suspect, the sheriff’s office said.
At one point the suspect abandoned his car and deputies surrounded him near the town of Prairie View, according to a live police radio dispatch carried on broadcastify.com.
Deputies described their pursuit using night-vision goggles and lasers to pinpoint his position.
“He’s moving between the hay bails. He has good cover. He has good concealment,” one officer said.
They were uncertain whether he was still armed with a rifle and maintained a perimeter until a special weapons and tactics (SWAT) team could arrive, according to the police radio.
“We got this guy. We’ve got eyeballs on him. Let’s take our time and get him on our terms, not on his terms,” another officer said.
Deputies then went to radio silence as they moved in for the arrest, a silence that was broken by, “Can we confirm one in custody?”
REFILE – FIXING IDENTIFYING SLUG Prasun Gajri, Chief Investment Officer, HDFC Life, speaks during an interview with Reuters in Mumbai, India November 23, 2017. REUTERS/Shailesh Andrade
MUMBAI – HDFC Standard Life Insurance Co. is looking to invest more in the capital goods sectors and a range of companies that are expected to benefit from a major government push to build more homes and roads.
Funds are likely to be put into cement makers, suppliers of building materials such as tiles and paints, and financiers of road and housing projects, Prasun Gajri, chief investment officer at HDFC Life told Reuters.
“I think the entire capital goods sector could start looking better than what it has been in the past,” said Gajri, who oversees management of more than $15 billion of investments in debt and equity. “We could look to increase exposure in some of these areas as we go along.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has pledged to spend billions of dollars under its “housing for all” programme through 2022. The government also has an ambitious roads programme with planned spending of more than $100 billion over the next five years in an effort to bump up growth in Asia’s third-largest economy.
The insurer, however, does not expect better days any time soon for property developers, many of whom are weighed down by high debt levels and stricter regulations, Gajri said.
Among other areas HDFC Life is positive on are consumer discretionary sectors such as automakers, which, Gajri said, could report positive earnings growth as the impact wanes from both the government’s surprise removal of high-value banknotes from circulation and its new goods and services tax.
Gajri said he would also look to “allocate a bit more” to commodity stocks, especially metals, as a supply clampdown in China has led to higher prices in India. The insurer is bearish on information technology and pharma stocks.
Helped by strong foreign fund inflows, Indian stocks have hit a string of record highs this year, with the main index gaining more than 26 percent so far in 2017, even as corporate earnings remain muted and businesses struggle with the new tax rollout.
Gajri said he expected a recovery in corporate earnings beginning from the current quarter and that it would continue for the next two to three years.
“If the earnings story plays out, then frankly, that will be a buying opportunity.”
HDFC Life, a joint venture between Indian mortgage lender Housing Development Finance Corp and Standard Life Aberdeen Plc, went public earlier this month after a $1.34 billion IPO.
The insurer has just under 60 percent of its assets invested in debt and the remainder in equity.
It has cut the average maturity of bonds held under the unit-linked plans in the past 12 months due to concerns over inflation, fiscal slippage and a hawkish monetary policy, although Gajri said he did not expect a complete reversal of the rate cut cycle or a “large and meaningful” slippage number.
“We would look to increase duration maybe at some point of time, but for the interim we’ll probably wait and watch and see how this pans out.”
MUMBAI – Ride-hailing firm Uber will partner with automaker Mahindra and Mahindra to pilot electric vehicles on its platform in India, the two companies said on Friday, at a time when the government is pushing to have all new vehicles electrified by 2030.
Uber will deploy hundreds of electric vehicles in Delhi and Hyderabad by March next year and will consider expanding the pilot to other cities, Madhu Kannan, the company’s chief business officer for India and emerging markets told reporters in Mumbai.
“For how long this pilot will go on is difficult to predict … It will require adequate progress in engagement with our stakeholders before we plan to expand to other cities,” Kannan said, adding that Uber so far has no major roll-out targets for electric vehicles in India.
Uber joins local rival Ola, backed by Japan’s SoftBank Group, which earlier this year launched a pilot for electric cars in the western city of Nagpur and is planning a large-scale roll-out by next year.
India is working on a new policy for electric vehicles but the auto industry is sceptical about its success due to the high cost of batteries and lack of charging infrastructure which they say could make the whole proposition unviable.
Electric car sales in India, one of the world’s fastest-growing car markets, are negligible compared with annual sales of over 3 million petrol and diesel cars last fiscal year, industry data showed.
But the government is determined and plans to push the use of cleaner technology vehicles through public transportation.
“Our collaboration with Uber is an important next step to help accelerate the large scale adoption of electric vehicles on share mobility platforms and meet the nation’s vision for EVs,” Mahindra’s managing director, Pawan Goenka, said.
As part of the deal, Uber will initially subsidise the cost of electric cars for its drivers and Mahindra will also provide finance, insurance and after-sales service. The two companies will also work with public and private firms to set up charging stations for the cars in Hyderabad.
Mahindra has previously said it would invest 6 billion rupees ($93 million) over the next two to three years to develop electric vehicles. The carmaker is currently working on two electric passenger vehicles, including one with its South Korean unit Ssangyong Motor Co., Goenka said.
Mahindra also has a partnership with Ola in which the ride-hailing company agreed last year to procure 40,000 vehicles, including electric variants.
A Black Friday sale sign is displayed outside a makeup store at Roosevelt Field shopping mall in Garden City, New York, U.S., November 24, 2017. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton
CHICAGO/NEW YORK – Turnout at U.S. retailers was relatively subdued on Black Friday, with many shoppers flocking to stores to eye items in person and enjoy the festive atmosphere while waiting to do their actual bargain hunting online.
There were few signs of the over-the-top frenzy that had been a hallmark of the start to the U.S. shopping season in years past, and some stores appeared to be getting creative with gimmicks beyond heavy discounts to lure shoppers through their doors.
The day after Thanksgiving is traditionally when retailers offer “doorbuster” deals attracting bargain hunters. Many department and big-box stores have said they will compete fiercely on price this quarter while keeping inventory lean.
Tricia Welch, 36, a customer service executive at a bank, stood in line for about an hour before getting into a Target Corp. store in Manhattan.
“There are definitely more discounts available through the year now than say four to five years ago … we only buy electronics or appliances on Black Friday.”
Miguel Flores, 43, an overnight security guard, visited the store after his shift ended.
“I mostly shop online but decided to drop in because I haven’t been to a store in a long time,” Flores said. “I bought some video games for my nephew a few days ago. The deals were pretty good then, too. In fact I was just looking at some of them today and the deals are similar.”
Tenesha Robertson, 43, a loader at UPS, exited Macy’s in Jersey City’s Newport Centre Mall with her mother, daughter and several large bags in tow. They were headed to drop shopping items off at Robertson’s car before buying more at the mall.
“We go to Macy’s every year,” she said. The discounts are about the same, but we like to come just to be here for the family time.”
But online demand may help make up for lackluster store traffic, and even the subdued in-store activity this year marked an improvement over recent years.
Macy’s Inc. Chief Executive Jeff Gennette told CNBC on Friday that the retailer was better off this year than last, had robust online demand and was in a good place for holiday promotions, sending the retailer’s shares up more than 4 percent in early trading.
JC Penney Co. climbed 1.8 percent, while Target Corp. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. edged higher.
The period between the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday and Christmas can make or a break a retailer, accounting for as much as 40 percent of total revenue for the year.
“The turnout this morning has been relatively slow but it is still the best we have seen in three years. We expect it to pick up as the day progresses,” said Burt Flickinger, managing director, Strategic Resources Group. He cited improving consumer confidence, a strong job market, and healthy housing prices.
More people picked up deals online and the traditional rush was split by stores opening the night before. Godiva gave out free chocolates, Sephora offered face masks and perfumes and dancers entertained Bergdorf Goodman shoppers, according to the New York Post.
The deepest Black Friday discounts included more than $200 off some BestBuy TVs, all bras across Victoria’s Secret Pink stores sold for $25, half-price video games at Target, and $50 off PlayStation 4 Pro gaming consoles at Walmart.
The challenge for retailers will be to convert early spending into a desire to spend throughout the season and to go beyond deep discounts, NPD Group Chief Industry Analyst Marshal Cohen said in a note.
There were some signs, however, on Thursday night of the shopping frenzy that Black Friday is traditionally known for.
The Riverchase Galleria in Hoover, Alabama, outside Birmingham, said police had to be called to break up a fight at about 11:30 p.m. on Thursday between two women who might have been trying to get the same sale item in a store.
Mike White, general manager of the mall, said there were reports of two other scuffles in the mall, Alabama’s biggest, and the mall decided to shut about 15 minutes early.
“There were just a lot of people shopping last night. We were full all night long.”
NOT WHAT IT USED TO BE
Enticing shoppers with Black Friday deals is especially important for brick-and-mortar retailers given the continued switch to online shopping, led by Amazon.com Inc, which has forced chains such as Toys R Us, apparel retailers True Religion, The Limited, Rue 21 and off-price retailer Payless Shoe Source to file for bankruptcy this year.
Amazon began touting its sales for Cyber Monday, one of the biggest days for online shopping, on Friday and said shoppers using its digital assistant Alexa could score deals as early as Sunday.
Wal-Mart, Target, Macy’s, JC Penney and other retailers opened their stores on Thursday evening and most have been offering extended deals online starting as early as October. Some started offering in-store deals earlier this week.
Garden State Plaza in Paramus, New Jersey, was crowded but not chaotic. Shoppers came for deals with nothing specific in mind. Those who came enjoyed the experience of trying on clothes rather than shopping online.
“It looks a little slower this year,” Build-A-Bear employee Marissa Trujillo said.
“Black Friday isn’t what it used to be because stores are extending their sales into the weekend and you can shop online,” said Unmesh Patel, 30, a project manager. “I also come for the rush even though it lessens every year.”
A Macy’s employee at the mall said it was less busy on Friday because the store had been open, and packed, on Thursday.
U.S. shoppers had spent more than $1.52 billion online by Thanksgiving evening, a 16.8 percent year-over-year increase in online spending, by 5 p.m. (2200 GMT) on Thanksgiving, according to Adobe Analytics, which tracked 80 percent of online transactions at the top 100 U.S. retailers.
“They’re all online,” said Sarah Jones, 42, an employee at Roosevelt Field Mall on Long Island. “Right now they’re at toy stores and electronic stores. They’ll trickle in a little later and we’ll be waiting. I’ve worked in retail my whole life, trust me.”
NEW YORK – The Pew Research Center determined in a new study that nearly 364,000 foreign students with F-1 visas were newly enrolled at a U.S. college or university in 2016, double the number at the outset of the Great Recession, in 2008. These students spent an estimated $15.5 billion compared with $5.5 billion eight years ago. However, what the study doesn’t go into, analyze, is how many of these students would be able to work in the United States, carve out a new life.
If new rules and regulations in the pipeline – either by way of Trump administration decisions or action in Congress come through – one thing’s clear: only a few of these foreign graduates will actually qualify to get an H-1B visa, to work in the US. And those who do get an H-1B visa, and then get married to a non-citizen, will do so knowing that their spouse will, on an H-4 visa, will not be legally eligible to work for pay.
In 2016, almost half (49%) of foreign students pursued graduate-level degrees, such as a master’s (41%) or a doctorate (8%). Other foreign students enrolled in colleges and universities pursued bachelor’s (38%) and associate (13%) degrees. Students from China, India and South Korea accounted for more than half (54%) of all new foreign students pursuing higher education degrees in the U.S. in 2016. About 108,000 new students were from China, accounting for 30% of the total. About 66,000 came from India (18% of the total), followed by South Korea with about 21,000 foreign students (6% of the total).
But dark clouds loom in the horizon for these graduate students, many of whom aspire to work and stay in the US. Fortune reported last week that the House Judiciary Committee just took a step toward toughening the rules for H1-B visas.
Introduced in January by Republican California Rep. Darrell Issa, the Protect and Grow American Jobs Act seeks to make it more difficult for “H-1B dependent” companies to obtain work permits.
Last week, the bill passed the House Judiciary Committee, which is just the first of many steps to becoming law. Next, the bill will be voted upon by the House and will then be sent to the Senate Judiciary Committee, and finally to the full upper chamber if it passes in committee.
The bill, among other huge amendments to existing rules, calls for a minimum salary raise for H-1B holders from $60,000 to $90,000. Companies would be required to send reports to the Department of Labor about efforts to recruit American workers, and H-1B dependent employers could be subject to five random investigations annually by the Department of Labor. Finally, the bill would prohibit H-1B dependent employers from replacing American workers with H-1B employees. Needless to say, the hardest hit would be IT professionals from India.
Issa’s bill is “the first substantial effort to change the program through legislation” by the Trump administration, notes the San Francisco Chronicle.
The important question is: how many foreign graduates or skilled workers globally will be eligible for H-1B visa next year, in the face of extensive hurdles being posed by the Department of Homeland Security?
Not many, given the new benchmark for eligibility. Perhaps, after years, it’s likely that the full quota of 85,000 H-1B visas may not be fully used next year.
On November 23, The New York Times ran a highly revealing first-person piece headlined ‘Is Anyone Good Enough for an H-1B Visa?’ written by Frida Yu, a Chinese lawyer and entrepreneur, who got an H-1B visa earlier this year after finishing an MBA from Stanford, to found a startup in Silicon Valley. However, the visa has since then been denied.
Yu recounted that after earning law degrees in China and at Oxford, after having worked in Hong Kong as a lawyer at a top international firm, after coming to United States three years ago for an M.B.A. and graduating and joining a start-up, he was given just 60 days to leave the country. He has 17 days left, as of writing the piece.
At the end of July, Yu received the “dreaded Request for Further Evidence from immigration authorities”.
“I provided the extra information that United States Citizenship and Immigration Services asked for. In September, I got another request. I complied again. Finally, on Oct. 11, half a year after my celebration, I learned I had been denied a visa,” Yu wrote.
“While it’s unclear exactly what percentage of petitions have been approved so far in 2017, requests for evidence like the ones I received have increased by 44 percent compared with last year, according to immigration statistics, strongly suggesting that more people are being denied than before Mr. Trump took office,” Yu wrote.
“Many of my fellow international students are in situations similar to mine. Some had job offers from companies like Google, Apple and PwC when they learned that their applications had been denied or did not even make it into the lottery. For those whose employers have only United States offices, losing the lottery meant losing jobs and going home, with no real way to use the skills they were on the verge of contributing to the American economy,” Yu wrote.
“My two requests for evidence asked me to prove my job was a “specialty occupation” — that is, work that only someone with a bachelor’s degree or higher can do. My work involves artificial intelligence and big data, and my letters of support came from an authority in my industry and veteran start-up investor, and a Nobel Prize winner. But it wasn’t enough to convince the government that my job requires advanced skills,” Yu wrote.
Yu ends by writing: “As I make plans to go back to China, I find myself wondering: If I am not qualified to stay in the United States, then who is?”
It’s not just H-1B visa aspirants. There’s also bad news for H-4 visa holders with an Employment Authorization Document (EAD). Breitbart reported this week that officials at the Department of Homeland “have drafted plans to end former President Barack Obama’s policy of awarding an extra work-visa to many H-1B guest workers.”
The Obama policy has delivered at least 78,000 extra H-4 work-permits to the spouses of foreign H-1B guest workers. Many of the spouses are white-collar graduates who compete for the jobs also sought by young American graduates.
A regulation to end the H-4 giveaway is “on the table” an agency official told Breitbart News. If published in the federal register, it will be enforced after 60 days but likely will be tangled up in business-funded lawsuits, the report said.
The move would impact less than 10 percent of the roughly 1 million resident white-collar guest-workers in the US. However, it’s going to create chaos in the finances of tens of thousands of families who depend on two salaries to run a household.
(Sujeet Rajan is Executive Editor, Parikh Worldwide Media. Email him: sujeet@newsindiatimes.com Follow him on Twitter @SujeetRajan1)
The Society of Indo-American Engineers and Architects (SIAEA) Scholarship Program is introducing a special Grand Scholarship in addition to the ten scholarships which are given annually to Indian American students pursuing degrees in the fields of Engineering and Architecture.
The Society of Indo-American Engineers and Architects (SIAEA) Scholarship Program is introducing a special Grand Scholarship in addition to the ten scholarships which are given annually to Indian American students pursuing degrees in the fields of Engineering and Architecture.
The announcement of this year’s Grand Scholarship worth $5,000, comes after the demise of the program’s former president Bansi Shah who passed away in August.
Shah was a very popular, friendly and a strong community leader, who took the Society of Indo American Engineers and Architects to greater heights and worked in the construction business, IT sector, security systems and real estate.
The Bansi Shah Memorial Trust-Foundation will award one Indian American student a $5,000 scholarship along with awarding ten Indian American students, a scholarship worth $2,000 each.
To qualify for a scholarship, a student must have the following:
Must be enrolled as a full time student in a college or university, who is working towards an undergraduate degree, a graduate degree or is enrolled in a master’s program in an Engineering or Architecture related field.
Preferences will be given to students who are in their third or fourth year of college as well as graduate students, Merit and need based.
The student must have a minimum overall GPA of 3.0 and be able to provide transcripts certifying the above, which will be attached to the application.
As scholarship checks will be made payable to the institution and not to students individually, a preference will be given to institutions located within the Tri-State region, though students outside of the Tri-State region are also eligible to apply.
Students must be a member of SIAEA; membership forms can be sent with the scholarship application.
The Scholarship Application Form must be submitted by Dec. 1 with a permanent email address, NOT a student email address.
Previous scholarship recipients are NOT eligible to apply again.
Awardees must be present to receive the Scholarship Awards during SIAEA Annual Gala on the evening of Saturday, Dec. 16 at the Grand Hyatt in New York City.
Scholarship Applications can be submitted to: Ketan.icc@gmail.com or mailed to:
SIAEA Scholarship Committee
SOCIETY OF INDO-AMERICAN ENGINEERS & ARCHITECTS
P. O. Box 596, Tarrytown, NY 10591
Attn: Ketan Shah, Chair
New York state Republican Party chair Ed Cox, presenting the Person of the Year award to Sampat Shivangi of Mississippi, at a Nov. 16, meeting of the Indian American Republican Committee in White Plains, New York.
The Indian American Republican Committee wing of New York State Republican Party held it’s annual gala on November 16, in White Plains, New York.
Several high-ranking New York state Republican party leaders were present at the event Westchester County, N.Y. Indian-American Republicans gathered along with people from other states.
Edward F. Cox, chairman, New York state GOP, was the chief guest. He lauded the Indian-American community for its ideals of hard work, family values, and commitment to education, which he said, are akin to the values of the Republican Party.
New York City Finance Chairman Chele Chivacci Farley appreciated members of the Indian-American community’s commitment to GOP and their support to President Trump who is building special relationship with India and Prime Minister Modi.
New York state Senator Dr.Terrance P. Murphy, presented a proclamation from the N.Y. Senate, honoring Dr. Sampat Shivangi of Mississippi, as 2017 Person of the Year award for his contributions to the GOP. Shivangi has attended the last 4 republican Party conventions, served as advisor to the U.S. Health & Human Services Department in the President George W. Bush Administration, and as chairman of Mississippi State Board of Mental Health, apart from other recognitions. Also honored were attorney Anand Ahuja, Prof D. Amar, and Chicago businessman Shalab Kumar, founder of the Republican Hindu Coalition.
Ven Parameshwaran, IARC vice chair, welcomed the gathering and introduced the guests. Thomas Koshy, the chair of IARC presided.
NEW YORK – Five Indian Americans have been featured in Forbes Magazine’s list of 30 under 30 in the consumer technology category: Shruti Merchant, Sneha Keshwani, Sundeep Kumar, Abhishek Chandra and Arun Saigal.
Merchant dropped out of medical school to find the startup HubHaus along with Kerry Jones in early 2016, whose goal was to make it easy for professionals to some place to live in shared housing communities.
The idea came to her after she faced difficulties finding affordable housing in Fremont, California.
Today, HubHaus has raised about $1.5 million and has more than 300 members in more than 50 homes in the Bay Area and Los Angeles.
Keshwani is a product manager at LinkedIn who runs global mobile growth and engagement for LinkedIn, leading projects across India, Germany, China and the U.S., which has resulted in double-digit increases in engagement since 2016.
She is also responsible for securing large partnerships with OEMs and carriers such as Samsung, LG, Sony and Verizon, with goals to bring the LinkedIn app to more than 400 million professionals worldwide by 2019.
Kumar founded LoftSmart along with Sam Bernstein, the website connecting student renters to apartment buildings looking to fill leases.
The website is known to be the “future of renting” where more than 250,000 leases are available to book instantly.
LoftSmart has already processed millions in lease transactions, raising $5 million from investors.
Chandra co-founded Spring Health at Yale University which offers a mental health tool for large employers that screens employees for mental illness, develop personalized, data-driven treatment plans based on peer-reviewed algorithms and connects employees to a provider within a week through a video psychiatry platform.
The idea came to him after he learned that fewer than one in eight people who are diagnosed with depression, get adequate treatment.
Saigal founded the app creation tool Thunkable, along with WeiHua Li, making it easy for people to build apps for both Android and iOS, regardless of their programming experience.
“They are passionate and formidable bunch, and for good reason. Their goal is nothing short of breaking the status quo and transforming the world,” said Forbes.
The Forbes Magazine’s list of 30 under 30 brings 30 game changers under the age of 30, from 20 industries who challenge the next generation of entrepreneurs, entertainers, educators and more.
NEW YORK – Indian American Ram Gupta, an assistant professor of chemistry at Pittsburg State University in Kansas, along with his team of students, are looking to transform waste such as green tea leaves into batteries.
“Our idea is to use eco-friendly materials which aren’t reactive with air. We can work these into an active carbon, which is a main ingredient in batteries. It has a very promising future,” Gupta told the Joplin Globe.
According to the Joplin Globe report, the project aims to develop a suitable high-performance; lightweight and safe replacement for lithium batteries, since researchers say that they contain a flammable electrolyte which is pressurized, allowing them to catch on fire easily, under certain conditions.
Gupta said the team has created small batteries from tea leaves and bamboo and is now focusing on creating a hybrid device which mimics the long-lasting power of a battery and the instant charge of a super capacitor.
“Such a battery could be used in anything from a cell phone to an electric car,” said Sanket Bhoyate, a student on the team who dreams to create a safe battery that would charge a handheld device immediately.
“Every day, we have to charge our phone for hours. I feel like if we can have charging for less than a second, that would be my accomplishment if I could do it commercially,” Bhoyate added.
Gupta mentions that tea leaves vary slightly depending on where they were grown and how they are grown thus there is no consistency like the lithium component of lithium batteries which are consistent.
The project is funded partly by the Missouri Soybean Merchandising Council.
Capitol Hill, Washington D.C. (Photo credit: Nimra Fatima)
Indian-American lawmakers on Capitol Hill are perhaps the best gauge of the immigrant experience of this community in America. In 2016, the banner year for this community, four Indian-Americans were elected to the U.S. House (3 for the first time) and one to the U.S. Senate, all Democrats. Two of the five are women, one from Washington State, Rep. Pramila Jayapal, and the other from California, Sen. Kamala Harris. One of them was re-elected to a third term, Rep. Ami Bera, MD, and another, Rep. Ro Khanna, caused an major election upset defeating a longtime incumbent fellow Democrat Mike Honda, both from California; and last but not least, Illinois sent one of them to the House of Representatives.
While this sudden increase was a long time coming, especially considering Indians have been in this country for at least a hundred years, and the first Indian-American elected to Congress, Dalip Singh Saund, D-California, was back in 1957, many a Ph.D. thesis will be written about whether it was the ‘Obama wave’ that catapulted several from this minority to Capitol Hill. Notably, the biggest waves of Indian immigrants began in 1965, with the Immigration and Nationality Act, and the population has grown exponentially even since as recently as 2000.
This November 8 marked a year into office for four of the five lawmakers Reps. Bera, Khanna, Jayapal, and Krishnamoorthi. Halfway into their twoyear terms, each of these lawmakers has made a mark on the national scene, introducing legislation, taking strong stands on major national issues like healthcare, immigration, homeland security, tax reform, and rules governing Internet and communications. A couple of them are ranking members in committees, and even vice chairs in Congressional caucuses. They are all members of the Congressional Caucus for India and Indian-Americans. They keep in close touch not just with their constituents, but rally together on issues that come up from time to time affecting the Indian-American community in particularly, and India, such as the Feb. 22, shooting death of Indian techie Srinivas Kochibothla in Olathe, Kansas by a white man.
Some of them have visited India within the year, and all of them are pleased in general with growing bilateral relations with New Delhi in both Democratic and Republican administrations. As they gear up for their re-election campaigns, News India Times asked them to reflect on the past year, their biggest achievements, issues that most concern them, matters impacting the Indian-American community, and the bilateral relations with India. Three of them responded via email. Rep. Bera preferred a telephone interview. Below are their responses to some questions.
Ami Bera
What do you consider your main achievement in first the year since you were elected and why?
I consider my biggest achievement and what I am most proud of is being the founder of the Problem Solvers Caucus when in my first term when it grew to 100 members. It’s starting to have an impact. If we want Congress to work, it’s going to take Democrats and Republicans coming together.
On the Indian-American side, when I was first sworn in, I set a goal to elect five Indian-Americans in the next decade. It took only four years for that to happen. I can’t take credit for the victories of Raja, Pramila, or Ro, or Kamala Harris, but what we can all do is be role models for those running in elections around the country. We all have a responsibility to be role models.
2. What is your approah to dealing with the Trump admin/GOP majorities in all branches of government and how have you cooperated with the majority and what have been the results?
Early on, we sent a message to the Trump administration to focus on issues that unite the country, like passing an infrastructure bill. President Trump chose not to do that, and instead went in a very divisive direction. That has forced us to defend issue like immigration, where we value immigrants and their contributions. America is a nation of immigrants, one generation after another who bring their culture, their religion, their ethnicity and their heritage, all woven together. That’s the strength of America. We will continue to send a message to the Trump Administration about uniting us, but that is not the direction he wants to go in right now.
3. How do you see the future of the Congresstional actions in the coming year? Apart from any other issues that you identify, could you talk about hate crime, DACA and healthcare as you see it.
Unless President Trump and Republicans in Congress decide to work with us, you will continue to see dysfunction. For instance on health care reform – there are only two Democratic doctors in Congress – and Republicans chose not to talk to either of us on health care. Now, Republicans are trying to do tax reform on their own.
My message to President Trump and Republicans is “come to the table and negotiate with us.” Compromise is not a bad thing.
As for specific issues – I will continue speaking out against hate crimes. We have to stand up and fight the divisive rhetoric Donald Trump puts out there.
With regards to DACA, these are children who have not committed any crime, this is the only home they know. We’ve got to stand up for the DACA kids.
On healthcare – our Problem Solvers Caucus put out a proposal to stabilize the individual health care marketplace. It’sgoing to take Democrats and Republicans working together.
4. How are you preparing for re-election and what is your fundraising situation and what has the Indian-American community done to help you?
The best way for me to get re-elected is by serving my constituents and the community. And that’s where my focus is. We’ve helped the people of Sacramento recover $4.5 million of benefits they were owed. If I continue to serve and do my job, that’s the best way to get elected, do your job.
5. Does the “Samosa Caucus” as Rep. Krishnamoorthi has called the slew of Indian-Americans now in Congress, meet and coordinate? How?
When Raja, Pramila and Ro first got elected, I sat with them and tried to help anyway I can – it’s overwhelming – to try to figure out staffing and all the committees. Now we work together to try and inspire the next generation.
Our schedules are different and it’sdifficult to connect often, but we certainly have discussion on how to inspire the next generation of Indian Americans. That generation should know there are these five members of Congress in the House and Senate, and they do have representation.
6. What do you count as your contributions to ties with India over the last one year? You did go in a Congressional delegation to India and it would be great to hear your concerns and plans? Could you also talk about how you plan to deal with H1-B visa, or with DACA, and bills going through Congress that might impact the Indian community here and in India directly?
U.S.-India relations remains very strong – it certainly grew during the Obama administration. President Trump and Prime Minister Modi have strong ties.
When I visited India earlier this year, I saw a very strong business-to-business relationship, and increasing recognition of India’s vital strategic role. We’re doing many naval exercises between the U.S. and India, but also India and Japan. India is a key player keeping South Asia open and secure.
We should also support the reforms of Prime Minister Modi and his efforts to make it easier to do business with India. I would echo what President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden said – the relationship between the U.S. and India can be the defining relationship of the 21st century.
7. You are on the very important House Foreign Affairs Committee. What do you consider your main achievements on that committee and what do you plan to focus on in the coming year? Which region in the world causes you most concern and which one the least concern and why?
I think we’ve elevated the US-India relationship. More Members of Congress visit India on a regular basis. Now that Democrats are out of power, it’s incredibly important for us to stand up and project American values. It’s a mistake for the United States to retreat from the world, and the world is a better place when America leads with our values of freedom, democracy, and open markets. Right now the Trump administration isn’t doing that.
Pramila Jayapal
1. What do you consider your main achievement in the year since you were elected and why?
Since being elected, I have introduced 12 bills in the House and co-sponsored over 300 pieces of legislation, but I think the achievement I am proudest of is energizing and engaging people in our fight for justice. Since January, I’ve held eight town halls on issues from immigration to tax reform and I regularly hold constituent coffees to really talk through the issues with our community. I’ve met countless people who are engaging in the political process for the first time, and it is a thrill to help them find their power and stay engaged. I’m also proud of the direct work our office does to help constituents navigate government agencies to solve problems. We helped hundreds with immigration cases, as well as helped get over $350,000 back to constituents for social security, disability and many other issues.
2. What is your approach to dealing with the Trump admin/GOP majorities in all branches of government and how have you cooperated with the majority and what have been the results?
I know that in the face of the news and the policies coming out of this administration, it can be disheartening to get up and fight every day, but the fight for justice is rarely easy. My motto is that we can’t just be an opposition party that fights against legislation that we know is wrong. We do have to oppose bad legislation, but we must also be a proposition party that puts forth a vision of what we want the world to look like and works to make that vision a reality. So far, I’ve found that being a proposition party is very beneficial for people on both sides of the aisle. At a meeting a few months back, I was discussing the need for immigration reform and protecting immigrant rights with a Republican colleague and we found that we had a lot of common ground. Now, I host bipartisan meetings on immigration policy and we’re working toward real proposals and real solutions to make our nation stronger.
3. How do you see the future of the Congressional actions in the coming year? Apart from any other issues that you identify, could you talk about hate crime, DACA and healthcare as you see it.
With a president who is increasingly unpredictable and sends dog-whistles to a shrinking base of hateful people, Congress has a critical role to play. We have to stand in the way of this undoing of progress and ensure that families across the country are protected and that their rights are upheld. After the presidential election, we saw hate crimes rise, and I introduced legislation demanding justice for hate crime victims. With the cruel termination of DACA protections and the GOP’s attempts to strip health care from millions, I made sure to fight both with legislation, speeches, organizing and constituent outreach. We are still fighting for a clean Dream Act to help immigrants and I am prepared to do whatever it takes to make sure Trump doesn’t stomp on the rights of immigrants, people in need of health care and all people across this country.
4. How are you preparing for re-election and what is your fundraising situation and what has the Indian-American community done to help you?
My race last year cost about $7 million, and I was so honoured to have 82,000 donors across the country contributing. Many of those donors were Indian-American and they have continued to stand by me. But we do need to do a lot more education of our community so that they understand how hard it is to run, and how much we Indian-American candidates need their financial support to run. Indian-Americans have done so well for themselves, and I have felt their pride in having the first Indian-American woman in the House! But we cannot do it without their financial support, and since we have to run every two years, it is important for as many to step forward and help keep us in office. Since Washington state is a “toptwo” state—which means the top two vote getters advance to the general election regardless of party—it means that I will likely face a strong challenger in all of my elections. I am preparing for that and certainly appreciate the support of Indian-Americans across the country.
5. Does the “Samosa Caucus” as Rep. Krishnamoorthi has called the slew of Indian-Americans now in Congress, meet and coordinate? How? And how do you see the role played by Indian-Americans in the domestic and foreign policy front in terms of their achievements and how they could gain more traction at the policymaking table?
We do talk and we do coordinate some because, based on our experiences, I think we bring a different and valuable perspective to the way we legislate. We have all come together on a number of bills around hate crimes protections for communities, including Indian-Americans. On my bill to address South Asian heart health, because Indian-Americans have four times the incidence of heart disease as other communities, all of the Indian-Americans have signed on as co-sponsors. But a lot of our work is individual too. I tend to work most closely with Ro Khanna because we are both on the Congressional Progressive Caucus, and on the Budget Committee together. As for the role of Indian Americans in the policy space, it’s the duty of community to get politically involved so that the policy outcomes reflect the diversity in our country. Asian American and Pacific Islanders are the fastest-growing racialgroup in the United States—we are powerful and many—but our voter turnout is the lowest of any demographic. I think that we have to claim our space; own our knowledge and experiences; and truly engage in the process. That is how we will gain more traction and more influence.
6. What do you count as your contributions to ties with India over the last one year? You did go in a Congressional delegation to India and it would be great to hear your concerns and plans?
As the first Indian American woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, it’s been an honor to be able to engage with India in an official capacity. I was honored to join a bipartisan congressional delegation trip to India and Nepal with Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi. We met with His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Prime Minister Modi, and Nepalese leaders to discuss the ways in which the U.S., India and Nepal could work together. It was wonderful to hear about India’s booming tech industry as well as the admirable strides the country is taking on climate change. Since climate change is one of the biggest priorities for me and my district, it was wonderful to get a perspective on India’s tremendous commitment to addressing the issues as well. I also held a business roundtable when I was in Bangalore in August, and it is exciting to think of the ways in which we can continue to advance India-US relations at a local and federal level. I have also had excellent relationships with the Indian Consulate, and they have helped me resolve numerous visa issues for my constituents. As for betterment of the U.S. Indian American community, I’m proud to have introduced my South Asian Heart Health bill that focuses on making our communities healthier and funding research to ensure that we get the care we need, as well as to have taken on a number of the issues around anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim concerns and hate crimes.
7. Could you also talk about how you plan to deal with H1-B visa, or with DACA, and bills going through Congress that might impact the Indian community here and in India directly?
I serve on the prestigious Judiciary Committee which has jurisdiction over all immigration bills. I also am the Chair of the Immigration Committee for the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, and I am also Co-Chair of the Women’s Working Group on Immigration. This is the issue that I have spent 15 years of my life working on and I am deeply familiar and knowledgeable about the problems we face and the solutions we need. I’ve been saying this for a long time and I believe it fully: We need comprehensive immigration reform and we need it now. That means we need to legalize the 12 million undocumented immigrants who are here working but have no process at all to legalize their status. While many people thing these are all Mexican immigrants, the reality is that a growing number of Asians—including Indians—are undocumented. We also must fix the family immigration system to get rid of the massive backlogs that disproportionately affect Indians and Filipinos, sometimes taking more than a decade or two to bring immediate family members to the country. And then we must create a workable system for those who are here on work visas—including H1Bs and others—to do research and contribute to our economy to be able to have a path to permanent residence and citizenship and bring their families. President Trump has continued to blame immigrants for all the woes of the country, criminalizing and deporting them, but the reality is immigrants contribute a great deal to our country and we should reform the system to recognize the needs of America’s economy and families. I believe we have a real shot to pass a clean DREAM Act that provides relief and a pathway to citizenship for the 1.5 million DREAMERs who are contributing so much to our country. I have also introduced two bills to prioritize the rights of immigrants in the U.S. I introduced the Access to Counsel Act with Senator Kamala Harris to ensure that immigrants being held at our borders have access to lawyers. My second bill focused on immigrant justice is the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act that restores justice and due process to our badly broken system. When people think of immigrants, they may not often think of the Indian community, but Indian immigrants are among the groups most impacted by the immigration backlog. These policies have a direct impact on the Indian community and I’m making it a priority to uplift South Asian immigrant stories.
8. You have made significant achievements within the first year in Congress – as Vice Ranking Member of the House Budget Committee; member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security; and as a Senior Whip of the Democratic Caucus, the First Vice Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, and member of the Co-Chair of the Women’s Working Group on Immigration, from other caucuses. Could you speak to issues of major concern to you as part of the Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security; and as co-chair on the Women’s Working Group on Immigration — what are the main achievements so far and the goals in the coming year?
An achievement I’m proud of is the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act that I introduced with my Washington colleague Congressman Adam Smith. We worked really hard on this legislation to start fixing our broken immigration system. The bill phases out for-profit detention prisons; creates health and safety standards for detention; restores due process for people who are detained; and demands transparency from detention centers. Just this month, our Women’s Working Group on Immigration Reform held a forum to discuss the experiences of immigrant women in detention. Immigration is absolutely a women’s issue and we’re working hard to bring these women’s stories to the forefront of the fight. This year alone, ICE detained 68,000 women, 525 of whom were pregnant. We’re discussing in-depth solutions to address the problems that are specific to women immigrants so that we can uplift the immigrant women who are truly the backbone of our society.
Raja Krishnamoorthi
1. What do you consider your main achievement in the year since you were elected and why?
In June, the House unanimously passed the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act, also known as the Thompson- Krishnamoorthi Act. I’m the lead Democratic sponsor of the bill, and I partnered with Republican Representative ‘GT’ Thompson of Pennsylvania to get this bill through the House. This bill will help millions of Americans get the skills they need to get good-paying jobs.
2. What is your approach to dealing with the Trump admin/GOP majorities in all branches of government and how have you cooperated with the majority and what have been the results?
Despite the partisan rhetoric, I’ve been able to work with several of my Republican colleagues. For instance, my legislation with Republican Congressman ‘GT’ Thompson of Pennsylvania that would increase funding for career and technical education passed the House of Representatives unanimously this year.
Additionally, my colleague Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI) and I created the Middle Class Jobs Caucus in order to find ways to ensure that families across the country are able to stay in the middle class and access good paying jobs.
3. How do you see the future of the Congressional actions in the coming year? Apart from any other issues that you identify, could you talk about hate crime, DACA and healthcare as you see it.
Hate Crimes: Early in October, I introduced the Hate Crimes Commission Act of 2017, which would establish a bipartisan 12-person commission tasked with investigating and produce a report on the increase in hate crimes, the causes of that increase, and ways that law enforcement can better combat hate crimes. While it is unclear whether Republican leadership will take up this legislation, I plan to continue gathering support from my colleagues.
DACA: When President Trump announced that he was ending the DACA program, he postponed the official end of the program by six months. Congress now has until March 5, 2018 to find a solution that will help our DREAMers attain legalstatus.
Healthcare: While Congressional Republicans have failed to pass their proposed repeal of the Affordable Care Act, the Trump administration continues to sabotage the ACA. From shortening the open enrollment period to ending the CSR payments, the Trump administration is making it more difficult for people to access affordable health care. Congress has a responsibility to ensure that our constituents are not denied the coverage that can often be the difference between life and death.
6. What do you count as your contributions to ties with India?
As one of five Indian-Americans and one of four Hindu-Americans in Congress, I have the ability and the responsibility to speak out on issues that impact members of our community, such as hate crimes, immigration, and jobs. I also work to ensure that the U.S. and India’s diplomatic, trade, and defense ties continue to grow stronger. This past summer, I had the privilege of traveling to India and meeting with Prime Minister Modi to discuss issues that matter to both our countries. I also support efforts to make India a permanent member of the UN Security Council.
7. Raja, you co-founded the Middle Class Jobs Caucus – could you give me an idea of where it’s at and what are the upcoming matters on its agenda.
I co-founded the Middle Class Jobs Caucus with my colleague, Representative Mike Gallagher (R-WI), because I believe that Congress needs to be doing more to help working families sustain good-paying jobs in our evolving economy. The Middle Class Jobs Caucus hosts monthly events, where we bring in academics and industry leaders to discuss the many challenges our nation faces in strengthening our growing workforce. Last month we hosted a leading economist from the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI) to discuss ways that the federal government can better incentivize small businesses to invest in workforce productivity and innovation. At this month’s event, which was hosted on November 1st, academics participated in an informal panel discussion on regulatory reform and fiscal responsibility. I look forward to continuing to work with Congressman Gallagher to introduce bipartisan solutions to pressing issues facing middle class families.
8. You co-sponsored H.R.357: To require the President to develop and release a comprehensive national strategy to prevent United States employers from overseas outsourcing and off-shoring practices that impact the United States workforce. How does that or how will it affect Indians holding H-1B visa holders from India in particular since they are among the highest users of this category?
The legislation simply ensures that the President develops a comprehensive strategy to ensure that American workers are able to compete fairly with workers from overseas. The legislation will not have an impact on current holders of H-1B visas.
9. You are on the Committee on Education And The Workforce. Much has been written about the debt burden on students going for higher education. What are your main solutions for this area of concern?
According to Pew Research, the average 2016 graduate owed $37,172 in student loan debt. This debt is held with high interest rates by the federal government, making it incredibly difficult for low and middle-income graduates to get ahead. That’s why I am a cosponsor of the Student Loan Refinancing and Recalculating Act, a bill that would allow both graduate and undergraduate students to refinance their student loans at lower interest rates, providing students with the flexibility and certainty to pursue their dreams.
Whether it be by decreasing their debt burden or improving existing educational programs, I am committed to ensuring that all students have access to a highquality, affordable education. My bill, the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act, accomplishes this by increasing funding and flexibility for state and local governments to administer career and technical education programs that equip students with the skills to obtain good-paying jobs.
Ro Khanna
1. What do you consider your main achievement in the year since you were elected and why?
The unanimous passage of the VET TEC Act, H.R. 1989, by the House. I was the lead Democrat on this bill introduced by Republican Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy – a fellow Californian – because I viewed it as a great way to help our veterans. The bill allows the GI Bill to cover the cost of technology courses for veterans so that they can join the tech field and prepare themselves for 21st-century jobs. I came to Congress because I wanted the opportunity to make effective changes, and as a representative from Silicon Valley on the Armed Services committee, passing a bipartisan, tech-related, bill was a proud moment.
2. What is your approach to dealing with the Trump admin/GOP majorities in all branches of government and how have you cooperated with the majority and what have been the results?
I regret the choices this Administration has made in its first year. Its priorities and values do not reflect the mainstream of America. That is why I steadfastly opposed the travel ban, discrimination against brave transgender servicemembers, and numerous attempts to take health care from millions of Americans. I will not compromise on those issues. However, I have been able to work with Republicans, at times, to pass commonsense bills like the VET TEC Act. I also visited Kentucky and spent a day with Rep. Hal Rogers, a senior member and former Republican chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, to find ways both sides can work together to expand tech jobs across America in areas like his district that have not prospered as much from the technology revolution.
3. How do you see the future of the Congressional actions in the coming year?
Apart from any other issues that you identify, could you talk about hate crime, DACA and healthcare as you see it. I think that Republicans will attempt to pass their tax cuts for the wealthiest and most profitable corporations. I hope that Americans urge their representatives to oppose legislation in which 80% of the benefits will go to the top 1%. As for DACA, I will push for Congress to work out a legislative solution that reinstates this important program.
4. How are you preparing for re-election and what is your fundraising situation and what has the Indian-American community done to help you?
This is political in nature. We decline to answer in an official capacity.
5. Does the “Samosa Caucus” as Rep. Krishnamoorthi has called the slew of Indian-Americans now in Congress, meet and coordinate? How? And how do you see the role played by Indian-Americans in the domestic and foreign policy front in terms of their achievements and how they could gain more traction at the policymaking table?
I’m very proud to serve alongside my Indian-American colleagues and I enjoy working with them. Our collective experience and diversity bring unique perspectives to our committees and the work we do in the House. I am heartened that, in the United States, I can be born the son of immigrants and can eventually serve in Congress.
6. What do you count as your contributions to ties with India over the last one year? You did go in a Congressional delegation to India and it would be great to hear your concerns and plans?
I have been active in numerous forums and activities working with Swadesh Chatterjee to strengthen the strategic partnership between the US and India on counterterrorism and innovation.
7. Could you also talk about how you plan to deal with H1-B visa, or with DACA, and bills going through Congress that might impact the Indian community here and in India directly?
I’ve introduced bipartisan legislation that reforms the H-1B visa program by eliminating loopholes to end abuses. We shouldn’t have companies with more than 50% of their employees on H-1B visas and we should make sure than anybody working with an H-1B visa is getting paid a fair wage.
As for DACA, I will continue to push for a solution in Congress that reinstates this program. We must safeguard the livelihood of DREAMers and provide these inspiring young people and their courageous parents a pathway to citizenship.
8. You are in two very significant committees. The Armed Services Committee is of particular significance at this time of global uncertainty, including in the South Asian region. What do you think about the Trump administration’s push to expand and deepen security cooperation and defense technology relations with India? And also its Indo-Pacific policy where it has declared India as a major partner, along with Japan and possibly Australia?
I wholly support productive national security partnerships between the U.S. and its allies – including India. It is in our strategic interest to strengthen our partnership with one of the world’s fastest growing economies and a pluralistic democracy. These relationships make the world a safer place. What I oppose is U.S. involvement in foreign conflicts that compromises our national security and endangers civilians, including the strikes in Syria earlier this year and U.S. participation in the Saudi-led bombings in the civil war in Yemen.
9. As a member of the House Budget Committee, you get to have input on various sectors of the economy. What are your major concerns on the domestic policy front at this time and in the coming years?
It is my goal to ensure that the American workforce is prepared as the global economy continues to become more technology-focused. Silicon Valley has seen tremendous growth over the past couple decades, and I want to help develop those skills and success in places left behind. It is vital that Americans have the opportunity and skill set to take advantage of the 21st-century economy.
NEW YORK – Two Indian American high school students, Anuhya Tadepalli and Poojita Chinmay, from Atlanta, Georgia, have founded a nonprofit organization called Chess for a Cause, to help senior citizens fight age-related ailments like Alzheimer’s.
They visit assisted living facilities in the Atlanta Metropolitan neighborhood to meet with the elderly showing them how to play chess through interactive videos as well as provide them with real-time coaching, in order to avert and relieve them from age-related medical conditions.
As a part of their initiative, Tadepalli and Chinmay are researching on the different types of dementia which the elderly population are most commonly diagnosed with.
“We formed Chess for a Cause in order to bring the benefits of chess to the doorsteps of senior in our community through volunteer work from high school students,” Tadepalli told the Indian Eagle.
The inspiration came from a volunteer visit to a memory care facility in 2016, after which the two of them decided to think of something they could do to help alleviate the discomfort caused to elderly people who suffer from Alzheimer’s and other symptoms of dementia and according to the research, mental stimulation provided by chess could help reduce the rate of cognitive decline.
“Chess allows the exercise of both the left and right hemispheres. We learned that it helps with the growth of dendrites, which are extensions of brain neurons, and these neurons help improve overall performance of the brain,” Tadepalli told Patch.
The Chess for a Cause initiative has also won a statewide competition conducted by Georgia Department of Human Services Division of Aging Services to recognize innovative movements aimed at assisting senior American citizens and differently able elders and is currently offering its free service to 14 facilities providing healthcare to senior citizens in the Metro Atlanta Area.
NEW YORK – The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts has received a $1 million gift to create an India Fund at the Kennedy Center which will produce and present Indian programming through 2025.
Those who were present at the signing of the agreement were Ranvir Trehan, a member of the Kennedy Center’s Board of Trustees, who provided the funding; his wife Adarsh Trehan; Deborah F. Rutter, the center’s president; Navtej Sarna, India’s Ambassador to the U.S.; Alicia Adams, vice president for international programming and Robert Van Leer, senior vice president of artistic planning.
“The Kennedy Center is a place, first, to be providing both programming that is well known and programming that is less well known, so that it becomes more well-known and it has a larger stage. Being the national cultural center, it is important for us to being international programming here for our audiences, both locally and nationally,” said Rutter.
“When you have individuals who are interested in a particular art form and they can help secure it financially, it means that we have greater liberty to be creative, and that’s exactly what you are helping us to do,” Rutter said.
Trehan is an entrepreneur and tech guru who has been one of Washington, D.C.’s leading philanthropists, both in America as well as internationally and has also emerged as a leading Indian-American patron of the arts.
“Our idea is that there is reinforced programming—that there is more of it, both well-known artists as well as experimental forms, fusion forms. Now I see in India, there is also comedy in the English language that is coming up and so, maybe there is something to tap up,” said Trehan, who hopes that the seed money he provided to the center would inspire others to do the same, especially his Indian-American colleagues on the board.
