Empty Ujwala Cylinders
The President of India inaugurated the world’s largest cricket stadium just a few days ago. The stadium which was earlier named after Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel has been renamed after Narendra Modi and this led to heated discussions on social media. In the midst of this, the price of gas cylinder that has been increased by Rs 25 at one go did not become news and the people’s anger against this did not go viral at all. About 75 per cent of the people of the country have nothing to do with the stadium as no food can be grown on it nor can the runs scored in cricket matches be used as fuel for cooking food or as manure for growing it.
Cricket is no longer a game these days. It is a huge industry. Those who play and those who make them play are making crores of rupees. In a country where about 80 per cent of people are suffering due to malnutrition, nothing can be achieved through this cricket stadium. Moreover, developed countries such as America and China have not given any importance to cricket. Such countries nurture other sports, win gold medals in Olympics, and attract the world’s attention. It is a crude joke that India that is completely destroyed by lockdown is inaugurating the world’s biggest cricket stadium. In a way, it is appropriate that the stadium has been renamed after Modi. It is actually conveying a message to the world about what is happening in a country like India that is grappling with hunger and where a Prime Minister renames a stadium after his name and celebrates this as a huge feat.
Around the same time, the price of cooking gas (gas cylinder) increased by Rs 25. In the month of February itself, the price of cooking gas increased by over Rs 100. The government that repeatedly talks about how it is providing cylinders to the poor under the ‘Ujwala’ programme has forgotten that gas stoves can’t be lit with empty cylinders as this hike in the price of gas cylinders also applies to the beneficiaries under the ‘Ujwala’ programme. It has already been exposed by the media that the Ujwala programme is bogus. In addition, by taking away the subsidy of the beneficiaries and increasing the price of cylinders, the government has made sure that gas stoves are not lit in the houses of the poor. The country might have to view the renaming of the stadium as a celebration of this by the Prime Minister.
Modi is behaving as though he has nothing to do with the frequent increase in the price of petrol and diesel, the manifold increase of the price of cylinder, and the daily increase in the prices of vegetables and groceries. He is trying to build a separate country for the 10 per cent of people. The world’s tallest statue, the world’s biggest cricket stadium, the bullet train, a park in the name of Shivaji, Ram Mandir in the name of religion are all for this small group of people. Experts are warning that the malnutrition level has touched 80 per cent. The protein intake has reduced substantially. The hands of farmers who were engaged in dairy farming have been tied with laws such as the Sale of Cattle Act. Indians have been stopped from eating beef but beef is being exported. While farmers find themselves on the streets due to the collapse of dairy farming, extensive efforts are being made to deprive the people of meat. In the midst of this, the rising fuel price has made people’s lives hell.
The government is deaf to the people’s anguish. If a demand for the reduction in the prices of petrol is made, the Prime Minister points blames the previous UPA Government for the price rise. The government is not willing to reduce the excise tax on crude oil even though it is well aware that this levy is responsible for the increase in fuel prices despite a fall in crude oil price at the international level. So far, all political parties were reluctant to take on the middle classes. But for the first time, a government is taking policy decisions that work against the poor and middle class and is trying to hoodwink them.
But now the entire country has turned against Modi’s economic policies. As an alternative to the world’s tallest statute and world’s biggest cricket stadium, the world’s largest farmers protest has been taking place in the country. The Prime Minister should understand that the world is evaluating India not through its stadium but through these protests. In this backdrop, the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has called for a Bharat Bandh on Friday (February 26) against the fuel price hike and the injustice due to GST. About 40,000 trader organizations have extended their support to the bandh. Perhaps, support on such a scale was not extended in the past to a bandh call. The Modi government should consider this also as its achievement.
The country’s economy is already in doldrums due to the lockdown and this bandh would further leave an impact on the country’s economy. Now, lorry owners have threatened to stop transportation for an indefinite period. If that were to happen, shops would have to be temporarily shut in the absence of the supply of groceries and vegetables. People cannot be cheated for long by giving false assurances. By naming a cricket stadium after him, Modi will not earn an eternity in history. That will happen only by responding to the problems of the poor and the working class. If Modi’s close confidantes don’t educate him about this, there is a danger that his name would be permanently etched in history for destroying the country.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Texas halts H-1B visas at state universities, agencies; to affect Indians
Houston (US) (PTI): Texas Governor Greg Abbott has ordered state agencies and public universities to immediately halt new H-1B visa petitions, tightening hiring rules at taxpayer-funded institutions, a step likely to impact Indian professionals.
The freeze will remain in effect through May 2027.
The directive issued on Tuesday said that the state agencies and public universities must stop filing new petitions unless they receive written approval from the Texas Workforce Commission.
The governor's order, in a red state that is home to thousands of H-1B visa holders, comes as the Trump administration has initiated steps to reshape the visa programme.
“In light of recent reports of abuse in the federal H-1B visa programme, and amid the federal government’s ongoing review of that programme to ensure American jobs are going to American workers, I am directing all state agencies to immediately freeze new H-1B visa petitions as outlined in this letter,” Abbot said.
Institutions must also report on H-1B usage, including numbers, job roles, countries of origin, and visa expiry dates, the letter said.
US President Donald Trump on September 19 last year signed a proclamation ‘Restriction on entry of certain non-immigrant workers’ that restricted the entry into the US of those workers whose H-1B petitions are not accompanied or supplemented by a payment of USD 1,00,000.
The H1-B visa fee of USD 1,00,000 would be applicable only to new applicants, i.e. all new H-1B visa petitions submitted after September 21, including those for the FY2026 lottery.
Indians make up an estimated 71 per cent of all approved H-1B applications in recent years, according to US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), with China in the second spot. The major fields include technology, engineering, medicine, and research.
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is the second-highest beneficiary with 5,505 approved H-1B visas in 2025, after Amazon (10,044 workers on H-1B visas), according to the USCIS. Other top beneficiaries include Microsoft (5,189), Meta (5,123), Apple (4,202), Google (4,181), Deloitte (2,353), Infosys (2,004), Wipro (1,523) and Tech Mahindra Americas (951).
Texas public universities employ hundreds of foreign faculty and researchers, many from India, across engineering, healthcare, and technology fields.
Date from Open Doors -- a comprehensive information resource on international students and scholars studying or teaching at higher education institutions in the US -- for 2022-2023 showed 2,70,000 students from India embarked on graduate and undergraduate degrees in US universities, accounting for 25 per cent of the international student population in the US and 1.5 per cent of the total student population.
Indian students infuse roughly USD 10 billion annually into universities and related businesses across the country through tuition and other expenses – while also creating around 93,000 jobs, according to the Open Doors data.
Analysts warn the freeze could slow recruitment of highly skilled professionals, affecting academic research and innovation.
Supporters say the directive protects local jobs, while critics caution it could weaken Texas’ competitiveness in higher education and research.
The order comes amid broader debate in the US over skilled immigration and state-level interventions in federal programmes.
H-1B visas allow US companies to hire technically-skilled professionals that are not easily available in America. Initially granted for three years, these can be extended for another three years.
In September 2025, Trump had also signed an executive order ‘The Gold Card’, aimed at setting up a new visa pathway for those committed to supporting the United States; with individuals who can pay USD 1 million to the US Treasury, or USD 2 million if a corporation is sponsoring them, to get access to expedited visa treatment and a path to a Green Card.
