Indo - US Relationship

2010-07-29T01:32:00.000-07:00

On June 4, Foreign Policy at Brookings and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry hosted a conference to explore the content and purpose of this partnership as seen from Washington and New Delhi. This event focused on two dimensions: the overlap and intersection of American and Indian policies in Asia and the impact of growing economic ties. Panelists discussed the future direction of the U.S.-India relationship and U.S. and Indian strategic interests in Asia. The event was part of a new South Asia initiative at Brookings that focuses on the interconnected issues facing this vital region today.

Energy Dialogues

2010-04-19T23:28:00.001-07:00

India – U.S. Energy Dialogue which focuses on Increasing energy efficiency, renewable energy, and clean energy technologies was pledged and the Global Climate Change Dialogue which tries to launch a process of bilateral scientific and technological collaboration to support the development, deployment and transfer of transformative and innovative technologies in areas of mutual interest including solar and other renewable energy, clean coal and energy efficiency, and other relevant areas.

India-US Cooperation in Education sector

2010-04-19T22:40:00.001-07:00

India-US Education Dialogue was announced by India and US Governments on July 20, 2009 during the visit of US Secretary of State to India. Minister for Human Resource Development (HRD), Shri Kapil Sibal, led a delegation to New York and Washington during 25-31, October 2009 with a view to explore partnerships with top US Universities for establishing fourteen new Innovation Universities in India.

‘Amartya Sen Fellowship Fund’ was instituted in December, 2008 at Harvard University for fellowships for deserving students from India. Indian study centers have been established at University of Pennsylvania, South Asian Initiative in Harvard, India Initiative in Yale. Government of India has taken many initiatives such as “Promotion of Indian Higher Education Abroad (PIHEAD)” program and awarding fellowships, including through the corporate sector; teaching of Ayurveda in US medical schools; and Indo-US Cooperation on E-Learning. In academic year 2008-09, there were 103,260 students from India studying in the United States, constituting 15.4 % of total foreign students in the USA.

During the visit of Prime Minister to Washington, both Governments launched the “Obama-Singh 21st Century Knowledge Initiative” with funding from both sides to increase university linkages and junior faculty development exchanges between US and Indian universities. On July 4, 2008, India and the US signed a new bilateral Fulbright Agreement, that supersedes the Fulbright Agreement operating since 1950 with U.S. funding. Under the Agreement, the Government of India and the United States will implement the scholarship programme as full partners with scholarship amount of US$5 million awarded annually. For 2009-10, there were total of 89 American Fulbright-Nehru students and scholars who went to India to teach or pursue research. A total of 72 Indian Fulbright-Nehru students and scholars came to the US to teach or pursue research.

Co-Operation in Counter Terrorism

2010-04-19T22:39:00.000-07:00

Duri ng the visit of PM in November 2009, the India-US Counter-terrorism Cooperation Initiative was initialed between the two countries, which would expand collaboration on counter-terrorism, information sharing and capacity building. Prime Minister and President Obama expressed their grave concern about the threat posed by terrorism and violent extremists emanating from India’s neighborhood, and agreed that resolute and credible steps must be taken to eliminate safe havens and sanctuaries that provide shelter to terrorists and their activities. JWG on Counter Terrorism was established in January 2000 and in the aftermath of the Mumbai terrorist attacks in November 2008, both sides have reiterated their commitment to combating terrorism. The 11th meeting of the JWG was held in Washington on 17 June 2009.

Ties under Obama administration

2010-04-19T06:00:00.000-07:00

Despite much gains in Indo-American relations during the tenure of the Bush administration, India was not one of the Asian countries U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited in February 2009. The Foreign Policy magazine reported that even though Foreign Policy Staff of the previous administration had recommended India as a "key stop" during any such official tour of Asia, Hillary Clinton had struck New Delhi from her itinerary.

The exclusion of India from the Asian tour was regarded as a "mistake" by some analysts. India was not even mentioned once in the Obama administration's official foreign policy agenda. Former US ambassadorRobert D. Blackwill warned that Indo-US relations faced a "downgrade" in the short term, as the Obama administration places China "on a substantially higher plane in US diplomacy than India". However, he remained optimistic about the long-term prospects for Indo-US relationship. The Forbes magazine alerted U.S. President Barack Obama on the need to prevent United States' new-found alliance with India from erosion.

The initial approach of the Obama administration towards ties with India raised concerns of a downturn in Indo-American relations. In an editorial, the National Interest suggested that the Obama administration could possibly damage "the foundations underlying the geostrategic partnership" between India and the United States. Another editorial published by the Taipei Times highlighted the importance of India-U.S. relations and urged Barack Obama to give "India the attention it deserves". Terming India to be United States' "indispensable ally", the Christian Science Monitor argued that the Obama administration needs India's cooperation on several issues, including climate change, Afghanistan war and energy security and therefore, Obama cannot risk putting ties with India on "back-burner".

In an attempt to bolster relations between the two countries, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited India in the second half of July 2009. Calling India a "key partner" of the United States, Clinton said that the United States wants India "to succeed as an anchor for regional and global security". She also mentioned four platforms for building future U.S.-India relationship — "global security, human development, economic activity, science and technology".

2010-04-13T04:16:00.001-07:00

The Indian community in the United States added more than 640,000 to its number in the last five years, a growth rate with no precedent in the history of Indian immigration to the U.S. From 1,678,765 in 2000, the population grew to 2,319,222 in 2005, a growth rate of 38%, the highest for any Asian community.

Indian have become the second largest Asian community after the Chinese whose numbers went up from 2,432,585 to 2,882,257 over the same period, according to the American Community Survey of the U.S. Census Bureau.

The 2000 Census found the Indians the fastest growing community showing an increase of 106% during 1990-2000. The Philippinos ranked second then, but have been pushed to third place.

Indians are most heavily concentrated in five states: California, New York, New Jersey, Texas and Illinois.

Similarly, the top five urban destinations of Asian Indians include New York, the San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose area, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Washington, DC. Though the Census is conducted only every ten years, the last one was held in 2000 -- the Census Bureau conducts an annual survey that measures key population statistics during which it accounts for people living in households and excludes the population in institutions, colleges and other group quarters. If those numbers are included, particularly given the huge number of Indian students at U.S. universities, the Indian population could significantly be larger.

The survey found that New Jersey has one of the highest percentages of Asians in any state. The state's Asian population jumped up by about 34% from 480,000 in 2000 to 620,000 in 2005. So, the number of Indians has gone up in New Jersey from 170,000 in 2000 to 230,000 now, a growth rate of 35%. Indian Americans are growing even in places hither to not known to have too many of them, the survey noted. While Indians continue to be the biggest ethnic Asian community in New Jersey, they have increased their representation in states like Michigan, Minnesota and Pennsylvania.

'But the rapid growth of immigrants are not associated with negative effects on the unemployment of native born workers, according to a study by the Pew Hispanic Center that examined data during the boom years of the 1990s and the downturn and recovery since 2000,' said Rakesh Kochhar, the Center's Associate Director for Research.

'No consistent pattern emerges to show that native-born workers suffered or benefited from increased numbers of foreign-born workers. In 2000, nearly 25% of native-born workers lived in states where rapid growth in the foreign-born population between 1990 and 2000 was associated with favorable outcomes for the native-born,' he said.

"The ACS provides us with an invaluable annual snapshot of the Asian American population profile," said Saul Gitlin, Executive Vice President, Strategic Services of Kang and Lee Advertising, a multicultural marketing consulting and communications agency specializing in reaching the Asian American markets.

Although ACS does not offer the depth of statistics available in the full decennial census, it does provide key projections for the nation, by region, and down to the state and county levels. According to Kochhar, economic growth and the jobs that come with it are magnets for immigrants. He said the flow of immigrants peaked in the late 1990s and then decreased. 'It may have been associated with the recession or with 9-11. But it was a temporary lull in 2003 and 2004. There has been a pickup again,' he noted.

The survey found that the Indian population in Minnesota stands at over 30,000. This is another sharp increase after the figure more than doubled in the 1990s from 8,000 to 17,000. Indians are the second largest Asian community in Minnesota after the Hmong, a people from southern China and Viet Nam.

The ACS found that the total Asian population has grown to 12.4 million, a 23% increase since 2000. After the Indians, the highest growth rate is among Vietnamese (28%) and Philippinos (22%).

In 2005, 12.4% of the nation was foreign-born. According to the ACS, more than one in three residents living in Los Angeles (40.3%), San Jose (37.9%), and New York (36.6%) were not U.S. citizens at birth.

The number of immigrants living in America increased about 16% in the last five years mostly because of recent arrivals from Mexico. The nation's household population in 2005 was 288,378,137, up from 273,637,296 in 2000.

Of those, 41 million are Hispanics. Among them nearly 27 million are from Mexico. The African Americans number 36.8 million, which relegates them to third place. The largest numbers of immigrants continue to live in the six states that have traditionally attracted them: California, New York, Texas, Florida, New Jersey and Illinois.

But, increasingly, immigrants are bypassing the traditional gateway states like California and New York and settling directly in parts of the country that, until recently, saw little immigrant activity like the upper Midwest, New England and the Rocky Mountain states.

Rise in Immigrant Population (in millions)

	2000	2005
India	1.68	2.32
Chinese	2.43	2.88
Philippino	1.85	2.28
Vietnamese	1.12	2.42

Indian Americans

2010-04-03T04:19:00.001-07:00

There are now more than 2.15 million peoples of Indian origin in America. They reflect the multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-lingual society of India.

Indian Americans are represented in many fields including academics and entrepreneurs, doctors and lawyers, engineers and financiers.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Indian American median family income is $61,322 as against the national median family income of $41, 994. The high income clearly reflects the advanced educational levels achieved by the community.

More than 85% of Indians in America have completed high school while at least 62% have some college education. As much as 61% of Indian Americans over the age of 25 hold a bachelor's degree or higher.

High levels of education have also enabled Indian Americans to become a productive segment of the U. S. population, with 72.3% participating in the work force.

Of these work force participants, 57.7% are employed in managerial and professional specialties.

Technical, sales, and administrative support occupations constitute another 29.8% of the work force.

The remaining 12.5% of the population works in other areas, such as operators, fabricators, laborers and precision production.

More than 5,000 Indian Americans today serve as faculty members in institutions of higher education in the U. S.

About 300,000 Indian Americans work in technology firms in California’s Silicon Valley. They account for more than 15% of high-tech startups in that region. The median income of Indian Americans in that region is estimated to be $125,000 (average $200,000) a year.

Two Indian Americans - Har Gobind Khorana of Massachusetts Institute of Technology and late Subrahmanyan Chandrashekhar of University of Chicago - have been awarded the Nobel Prize, in medicine and physics respectively.

In deed, the NASA's premier X-ray observatory was named the Chandra X-ray Observatory in honor of the late Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar. Known to the world as Chandra, he was widely regarded as one of the foremost astrophysicists of the twentieth century. The observatory was launched into space in July 1999.

Late Dr. Kalpana Chawla added a new chapter to the history of the Indian American community. In 1997, She became the first Indian or Indian American to fly in the US space shuttle. She was part of the Space Shuttle Columbia Flight STS-87.

The estimated annual buying power of Indian Americans in the United States is around $ 20 billion.

Indian Americans are increasingly beginning to take a more direct role in political activities. They have traditionally exercised the most political influence through their campaign contributions, and are actively involved in fundraising efforts for political candidates on the federal, state and local levels.

As a result of these activities, together with the growing commercial interest in investment in India, the India caucus in the House of Representatives now numbers 118.

Indian Programes in american universities

2010-04-03T04:17:00.001-07:00

American Universities has many world best educational institutions. They provide a better education and gives a path for a comfortable life. They also provide indian and south asian programmes. Below are list of colleges/universities which gives an indegenous opportunity,

Indo - American Community

2010-04-03T04:16:00.001-07:00

The 2.7 million strong Indian American community in the United States has been growing in affluence and political strength and has developed into a force for closer and stronger ties between their adopted country and their nation of origin. The community has played a significant role in the successful passage of the Henry J. Hyde Act by the U.S. Congress and eventually signing of the Agreement for Cooperation between the Government of India and the Government of the United States of America concerning Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy. A number of Indian Americans are occupying high level posts of Governor, Senators/Representatives of State Legislatures and in the Federal Administration. Their active cooperation and interaction at different levels with the Government of India as well as with the U.S. Administration provides a bridge between the two countries

Cultural Relations

2010-04-03T04:14:00.001-07:00

Indian music, dance, art and literature are widely appreciated in the United States. Kennedy Centre in collaboration with Indian Council for Cultural Relations [ICCR] is organizing the “Festival of India’” in March 2011 focusing on established as well as emerging artists and art forms including all of the performing arts. Apart from live shows, exhibitions and lecture-cum-demonstrations, the Kennedy Center will also showcase the Festival of India through educational programmes that reaches into schools through satellite and internet. As in the past, the Embassy organized events marking major Indian festivals, which were well attended, including by American nationals.

Indo - American Friendship

2010-04-03T04:06:00.001-07:00

Indo - American friendship association launched in New Delhi on March 15, 2010, the Indo-American Friendship Association (IAFA) is yet another step to strengthen people to people ties of the two nations. U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission Steven J. White addresses the distinguished gathering in presence of the chief guest Minister of State Dr. Shashi Tharoor at the launch function.

2010-04-03T02:53:00.000-07:00

Hot News

US universities are ready to start their institutions in india. A bill is waiting to be get cleared by the central government of india. And once it get cleared its all happy to say, "US Universities in India." US universities see India’s large English-speaking population, affluent middle class and the value given to higher education as attractive opportunities for their schools.

Columbia’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation will launch Studio-X Mumbai in conjunction with the university’s opening of the global centre. Studio-X Mumbai will occupy a loft-like space in a heritage building near Victoria Terminus and will join the network of Columbia architecture labs in Beijing, Amman, Rio de Janeiro and Moscow.

NYU-Poly is looking to partner with Indian universities like the Indian School of Business in Hyderabad. “There is a potential to team up,” Jerry Hultin, president of NYU-Poly, told DNA. Hultin, who has been at the front of creating New York University’s campus in Abu Dhabi, indicated that NYU had a wait-and-watch approach to India.

Landmark of Co-operations in yesteryears

2010-04-03T02:47:00.001-07:00

Cooperation towards the Indian 'Green Revolution'.

Development of an anti-relapse anti-malarial compound jointly by Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI) with US organizations.

Collaboration between of the National Institute of Oceanography, Goa and Office of Naval Research on the Arabian Sea Tropic Dynamics.

Involvement of Udaipur Solar Observatory as one of the six observation sites for the Global Oscillation Network Group (GONG) project managed by the National Solar Observatory, Tucson.

Fabrication and supply of the muon tracking detector parts by Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) for the PHENIX collaboration experiment aimed at the search for quark-gluon plasma at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) at BNL in USA.

Establishment of a solar test facility at the Solar Energy Centre of Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Sources near Gurgaon with the cooperation of the Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, USA.

ISRO-DST and NASA-NOAA MOU for Research in Atmospheric Sciences was signed in 1997 for sharing of Indian and US meteorological data and collaborative research in the area of earth and atmospheric sciences.

Indo-US Vaccine Action Program (VAP): The agencies involved in this program are Department of Biotechnology, Indian Council of Medical Research and Ministry of Health & Family Welfare from India and National Institute of Health and USAID from USA.

Contraceptive and Reproductive Health Research: The participating agencies in this initiative, which was taken up in November 1997 are, from the Indian side, Indian Council of Medical Research, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (with Department of Biotechnology as the nodal agency), and on the US side, National Institute of Child Health & Human Development and USAID.

Establishment of Indo-US Science & Technology Forum in 2000 with Endowment of over $ 7 million. The Forum activities are managed with the earning of annual interest and recurring matching grant from the Indian Government to the tune of about $ 1 million/year.

2010-03-27T22:22:00.001-07:00

President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh launched a Green Partnership, reaffirming their countries’ strong commitment to taking vigorous action to combat climate change, ensuring their mutual energy security, working towards global food security, and building a clean energy economy that will drive investment, job creation, and economic growth throughout the 21st century. Toward that end, Prime Minister Singh and President Obama agreed to strengthen U.S.-India cooperation on clean energy, climate change, and food security by launching the following initiatives:

Prime Minister Singh and President Obama agreed to encourage the mobilization of public and private resources to support a fund or funds that would invest in clean energy projects in India. This represents a major step forward in U.S. – India partnerships to strengthen their economic growth and energy security, while also addressing the threat of global climate change.

Prime Minister Singh and President Obama affirmed that the Copenhagen outcome must be comprehensive and cover mitigation, adaptation, finance, and technology. Moreover, it should reflect emission reduction targets for developed countries and nationally appropriate mitigation actions by developing countries. There should be scaled-up finance, technology, and capacity-building support. There should be full transparency as to the implementation of their mitigation commitments and appropriate processes for review. Both leaders resolved to take significant mitigation actions and to stand by these commitments.

In addition, the two leaders launched an Indo-U.S. Clean Energy Research and Deployment Initiative, supported by U.S. and Indian government funding and private sector contributions. This new Initiative will include a Joint Research Center operating in both the United States and India to foster innovation and joint efforts to accelerate deployment of clean energy technologies. Priority areas of focus for this Initiative may include: energy efficiency, smart grid, second-generation biofuels, and clean coal technologies including carbon capture and storage; solar energy and energy efficient building and advanced battery technologies; and sustainable transportation, wind energy, and micro-hydro power. The Initiative will allow the two governments to leverage expertise from both countries including government, private industry, and higher education to accelerate the development and deployment of new clean energy technologies. The Initiative will facilitate joint research, scientific exchanges, and sharing of proven innovation and deployment policies.

The Initiative’s work will be complemented by two Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) on Solar Energy and Wind Energy. Through the MOU on Solar Energy, the U.S. National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) will partner with India’s Solar Energy Centre to develop a comprehensive nation-wide map of solar energy potential. More than two dozen U.S. and Indian cities will partner to jointly advance solar energy deployment. The MOU on Wind Energy between NREL and India’s Centre for Wind Energy Technology will focus in particular on supporting efforts to develop a low-wind speed turbine technology program.

The U.S. and India will increase cooperation on unconventional natural gas including on coal bed methane, natural gas hydrates, and shale gas. The two countries will also work to reduce emissions from land use, including deforestation, forest degradation, enhanced sequestration, and sustainable management of forests.

Working with India’s Ministry of Environment and Forests, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will provide technical support for Indian efforts to establish an National Environmental Protection Authority focused on creating a more effective system of environmental governance, regulation and enforcement.

They agreed to launch a new Agriculture Dialogue and agreed on a Memorandum of Understanding on Agricultural Cooperation and Food Security that will set a pathway to robust cooperation between the governments in crop forecasting, management and market information; regional and global food security; science, technology, and education; nutrition; and expanding private sector investment in agriculture.

In support of food security and climate change objectives, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will work with India’s Ministry of Earth Sciences to more accurately forecast monsoons, and thereby reduce risks associated with climate change and to develop early warning systems to protect people and crops from the adverse effects of extreme weather.

In support of these and other initiatives, including continuing cooperation on nuclear power, Prime Minister Singh and President Obama agreed the Governments of India and the United States will continue to engage regularly through the new U.S.-India Agriculture Dialogue, the U.S.-India Energy Dialogue and the U.S.-India Global Climate Change Dialogue.