India hitting US "very hard" on trade; will talk business with PM Modi: Trump
Washington: India has been hitting the US "very hard" on trade for many years with high tariffs, according to President Donald Trump who said he will "talk business" with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his first visit to the country.
President Trump and First Lady Melania are scheduled to travel to Ahmedabad, Agra and New Delhi on February 24 and 25.
"I'm going to India next week and we're talking trade. They've been hitting us very hard for many, many years," Trump said at a 'Keep America Great' rally in Colorado on Thursday.
Trump told thousands of his supporters that he "really likes" Prime Minister Modi and they would be talking business.
"We've got to talk a little...We've got to talk a little business. It's been hitting us hard. They give us tariffs, one the highest in the world is India," he said.
Ahead of Trump's visit, there have been reports on India and the US agreeing on a trade package as a precursor to a major trade deal.
Downplaying the expectation of a trade deal with India during his visit, Trump said the two countries could make a "tremendous" trade deal, but indicated that the talks on this might slow down if he did not get a good deal.
"We're going to India, and we may make a tremendous deal there," Trump said in his commencement address at the Hope for Prisoners Graduation Ceremony in Las Vegas on Thursday.
"Maybe we'll slow down. We'll do it after the election. I think that could happen too. So, we'll see what happens," he said.
"But we're only making deals if they're good deals because we're putting America first. Whether people like it or not, we're putting America first," Trump said.
The bilateral India-US trade in goods and services is about three per cent of the US' world trade.
In a recent report, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) said the trading relationship is more consequential for India - in 2018 the US was its second largest goods export market (16.0 per cent share) after the European Union (EU, 17.8 per cent), and third largest goods import supplier (6.3 per cent) after China (14.6 per cent) and the EU 28 (10.2 per cent).
India is now the United States' eighth-largest trading partner in goods and services and is among the world's largest economies.
India's trade with the US now resembles, in terms of volume, America's trade with South Korea (USD 167 billion in 2018) or France (USD 129 billion), according to Council on Foreign Relations.
Trump spoke about his India visit at the Colorado rally and the grand welcome he is expected to get in the country.
"I hear, they are going to have 10 million people. They say anywhere from six to 10 million people are going to be showing up along the route to one of the largest stadiums in the world, the largest cricket stadium in the world, which is brand new and beautiful," Trump said.
He said the "Namaste Trump" rally in Ahmedabad would spoil him.
"Prime Minister Modi said, we will have 10 million people greet you. Here's my problem. We have a packed house. We have a lot of people, thousands of people that couldn't get in. It's going to look like peanuts from now on," he said.
"I'll never be satisfied with the crowd. If we have 10 million people in India, how can I be satisfied when we fill up like a 60,000 seat stadium? I am getting spoiled? He said build a bigger stadium visit," Trump said.
One of his supporters from the audience suggested that he built a bigger stadium. Trump indicated that his visit will result in more products "proudly stamped with the beautiful phrase Made in the USA".
During the address, the president reiterated his recent conversation with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg who told him that he is the number one on Facebook.
"He (Zuckerberg) said, I just want to congratulate you. He said, you're number one in the world in Facebook. I said, no. I said, who's number two? He said, Prime Minister Modi of India," Trump said, adding that Modi has an advantage as he represents a larger population.
"I said, wait a minute, wait a minute. He's got 1.5 billion people and we have 350 (million). He should be number one, but we're never going to give up that position of number one in the world for our country, for Facebook, for Twitter, anything, and they (the press) still haven't figured it out. They have not figured it out. But look at all that press. Look at all that press," Trump said.
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Telangana CM urges Amit Shah to increase sanctioned strength of IPS officers in state
Hyderabad (PTI): Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi on Wednesday night and urged him to increase the sanctioned strength of IPS officers to the state in view of its growing administrative and security needs.
The two leaders also discussed the recent surrender of several senior Maoist leaders before the Telangana Police and other issues.
"During the meeting, the two leaders discussed the issue of Maoist surrenders and their rehabilitation. The chief minister informed Shah that significant improvements in policing have taken place in Telangana over the past two years," an official release here said.
Highlighting that 591 Maoists have laid down their arms and joined the mainstream of society during this period, the chief minister said the state government was providing them compensation and rehabilitation assistance as per the rules.
He requested the Union home minister to extend financial support from the central government for development works in the backward regions of the state.
Reddy also urged Shah to increase the sanctioned strength of IPS officers to the state from 83 to 105 in line with the state's growing administrative and security needs, the statement said.
The first cadre review after the formation of Telangana was conducted in 2016, while the next review, due in 2021, was delayed and finally carried out in 2025. Even then, only seven additional IPS officers were allocated to the state, the chief minister informed Shah and requested that the third cadre review be conducted in 2026 as per the schedule.
Reddy explained that Telangana, like the rest of the country, is facing several modern challenges, including cybercrime, drug trafficking, white-collar crimes, and other emerging security threats.
He highlighted the reorganisation of the Hyderabad, Cyberabad, and Malkajgiri Police Commissionerates, the proposed formation of the Future City Commissionerate and the rapidly growing population in Hyderabad to underline the increasing administrative requirements of the state.
