Amid the debate and a surge in backlash against H-1B visa professionals by far-right groups in the United States, the Indian diaspora there supported the visa programme saying it brings skilled workers from across the globe to the country. At the 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas in Bhubaneswar, members of the diaspora that The Indian Express spoke say they are waiting for policies of the new administration under President-elect Donald Trump to be clearer. Trump will be sworn in as the 47th President of the United States on January 20 – his second term. Started in 1990, the H-1B Visa programme allows American employers to hire immigrant workers in occupations that require “a high level of skill” and “at least a bachelor’s degree”, according to the US Department of Labour. The programme was intended to help “employers who cannot otherwise obtain needed business skills and abilities from the US workforce by authorising the temporary employment of qualified individuals who are not otherwise authorised to work in the United States”. However, Trump’s re-election in November brought renewed focus on the programme, two groups of his supporters battling each other over whether stricter immigration controls were needed. Sharad Lakhanpal, a Lucknow-based doctor who has been living in the US for the last 40 years and is now an American citizen, said the business class there need the H-1B Visas and highly-skilled Indians. “Though it’s a political issue and we have a new president—Trump- - coming, we have to see what his policies will be. I don’t think Trump’s tenure will be averse to Indians as he has already appointed many Indians in high-level positions like Vivek Ramaswamy in the newly created Department of Government Efficiency,” said Lakhanpal, who stays in Dallas. Sarada Panda too echoes this sentiment. An Odia living in Dallas for the last 25 years, Panda, a US citizen and vice-president at CitiBank, believes that the business class there needs the Indian workforce. “Maybe that is why there is a lobby there to increase the number of H-1B visas,” Panda, who works as the vice president in CitiBank, told The Indian Express. Currently, there is an annual cap of 65,000 visas/year under the programme, with an extra 20,000 available to those with a master’s degree or higher from a US university. Calling the “much-debated” Visa programme a “win-win situation” for both the United States and the motherlands of the beneficiaries, Hariaarjun Patro, a Dallas-based businessman, said the H-1B professionals contribute significantly to both countries. “The US government has been supporting professionals from outside countries like India and other countries. It should be continued,” said Patro, who is originally from Berhampur, Odisha. Debjoyti Roy, a doctor, summed up the row as a “tricky” situation. “On one hand, there is a need for a skill base but on the other hand, many adjustments are needed. I hope the new regime will take an appropriate call,” he said. The delegation from the US also held a meeting with Union External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.
