From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru
Bengaluru, Apr 25: The Congress party has attacked the Narendra Modi government for floundering its job policy and held that India’s growth story on the global stage as a ‘tech-power’ was under serious jeopardy.
Addressing a news conference, Randeep Singh Surjewala, AICC in charge of communications, said the recent decision of the Donald Trump administration to clamp down on H-4, H1-B and L1 visas in the US would force many Bengaluru-based professionals in information technology to return to India.
Indian professionals, who get 60% of all H1-B visas are the worst hit and about 7.5 lakh employees might consequently get deported after losing H1B status, Surjewala said.
Under the newly approved H1-B visa jobs for six top Indian IT companies - TCS, Infosys, HCL, L&T, Tech Mahidra, Mindtree - have gone down from 40% to 68%, he claimed.
US Citizen & Immigration Services (USCIS) has decided to remove H-4 work permits for dependent spouses of the immigrants on April 4, 2018.
"The debilitating effect of this decision can be gauged from the fact that between October 1, 2016 and September 30, 2017, a total of 1.70 lakh H4 visas were given to Indian spouses. This will lead to forcible return of software professionals for want of survival on single income in US, the Congress leader claimed.
He said L1 visas in US for ‘Specialized Knowledge Professionals’ was under a cloud with rejection rate reaching 70% as the definition has been left to be adjudged at the mercy of Immigration officers. "Once again, Indians were the worst affected.’’
Prime Minister Modi and BJP must answer to India’s, especially Karnataka’s IT industry, IT professionals and the young, the reason for bartering India’s interests and compromising India’s position as ‘tech giant.”
Is this the result of Modi’s Make in India, Skill India and other such initiatives, the Congress leader asked.
Modi should safeguard interest of Indians in the US and thereby safeguard their jobs, Surjewala said and ridiculed the Prime Minister for simply hugging world leaders without achieving anything worthwhile for the country.
Ahead of Modi’s visit to China, Surjewala lashed out at Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and alleged that both Ministers have miserably failed to confront China on creation of ‘full-fledged Chinese Military Complex’ in Doklam right up to 10 meters from Indian Army post.
Both the Ministers have failed to confront China on building of a new road South of Doklam plateau to provide easy access to China to ‘Jhamperi Ridge’ overlooking the ‘Siliguri Corridor’ that is strategic ‘Chicken’s Neck’ which is India’s gateway to the north east states, he alleged.