The US Embassy in New Delhi celebrated ‘Student Visa Day’ on Thursday along with the consulates in Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai. The day was dedicated exclusively to the issuing of visas to students who have applied to the US for higher studies.
“This is a special day for students only. We welcome people to the US,” said George Hogeman, US Consulate General. Officials stressed on the importance of education as the basis of strengthening ties between the two nations.
“Higher education plays a central role in the U.S.-India relationship. One out of six international students in the United States is from India,” said acting US ambassador MaryKay Carlson. Refuting claims that the number of applicants to the US is decreasing, Ms. Carlson said: “The trajectory does not appear to be dipping. Only two years ago, 1,00,000 Indian students pursued higher education in the United States. Today, that’s up to 1,66,000 and this number continues to grow.”
H1B reviews
Responding to queries about H1B visas, Mr. Hogeman said: “Nothing has changed. The H1B visas are under review.” “There are many stakeholders in the H1B process. The review process will take time,” added Ms. Carlson. The acting ambassador also handed over visas to four students on this day who have been accepted by different colleges in the US.
“All I am focusing on is the quality of education. The campuses are really safe and there are associations in every college to tackle racial discrimination. So it is not my primary concern,” said Arunima Sharma, who has received an offer from Columbia University to pursue MS in Management Sciences.
“I did not want to pursue a regular MBA programme. So I applied to the US mainly to enhance my leadership and management skills,” said Parul Sharma, who will be heading to Standford Graduate School of Business.
