Washington: Indian-American Sabrina Singh would serve as Deputy Press Secretary to the Vice President in the White House, according to an announcement made by the Biden-Harris Transition.

Singh was Press Secretary to Vice President-elect Kamala Harris on the Biden-Harris campaign. Prior to her role on the campaign, she served as a senior spokesperson for Mike Bloomberg's presidential campaign and National Press Secretary for Cory Booker's presidential campaign.

She previously served as deputy communications director for the Democratic National Committee, spokesperson for American Bridge's Trump War Room, and Regional Communications Director on Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign.

Singh has also worked at SKDKnickerbocker, served as Communications Director for Representative Jan Schakowsky, and worked at various Democratic committees, said the Biden-Harris Transition as it announced additional members of the Vice President's Office at the White House.

Prominent among them being Yael Belkind, Assistant to the Chief of Staff to the Vice President; Vincent Evans as Deputy Director of the Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs; Michael Fuchs as Deputy Chief of Staff; Kate Childs Graham as Director of Speech Writing and Dr Ike Irby as Policy Advisor to the Vice President.

Deanne Millison has been named Deputy Policy Director to the Vice President; Rachel Palermo as Assistant Press Secretary; Mike Pyle as Chief Economic Advisor; Peter Velz as Director of Press Operations; and Herbie Ziskend as Deputy Communications Director.

These diverse, experienced, and talented individuals will join the Office of the Vice President.

The appointments demonstrate that the president and vice president-elect are building an administration that looks like America and is ready to deliver results for the American people on day one, the transition said.

Building our nation back better requires having the best and the brightest in our administration. These accomplished individuals have the knowledge and expertise to hit the ground running on day one and will work each day in service to the American people, President-elect Joe Biden said.

With their varied and diverse backgrounds, they bring a shared commitment to tackling the crises facing America, helping us become a stronger, more united nation, he said.

These deeply experienced public servants reflect the very best of the US and they will be ready to get to work building a country that lifts up all Americans. Their counsel and expertise are grounded in a commitment to making sure the economy works for working people and all those looking to work, said Harris.

And their leadership will be critical as we work to meet the challenges facing the American people -- from the coronavirus pandemic to this economic recession to our climate crisis and long-overdue reckoning on racial injustice. I am proud to announce these individuals will be joining my team and look forward to working alongside them each and every day, she said.

Biden and Harris will take the oath of office on January 20.

President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris have a bold agenda that will build our nation back better than before. These appointees will work tirelessly for the American people, and I am proud to have them join our White House team, said incoming Chief of Staff to Vice President Tina Flournoy.

Singh is the granddaughter of Sardar J J Singh of the India League of America.

In the 1940s, Sardar along with a small group of fellow Indians mounted a nationwide campaign against racially discriminatory policies of the US. This culminated in then-president Harry Truman signing the Luce-Celler Act on July 2, 1946. The signing of the act allowed a quota of 100 Indians to immigrate to the United States per annum.

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Shillong (PTI): The Meghalaya Police seized drugs worth over Rs 51 crore, the biggest haul of narcotics in the state so far, in East Jaintia Hills district and arrested two Mizoram-based persons in this connection, a senior officer said on Saturday.

The seizure was made during a coordinated naka-checking conducted by the police and Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) personnel in the Ratacherra area on Friday, he said.

During the operation, a vehicle with three persons, including the driver, on board was intercepted and searched in accordance with due legal procedures.

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Upon checking, 19 plastic soap cases, containing suspected heroin weighing 203.7 grams, were recovered from the possession of one of the three persons, the officer said.

The search of the vehicle led to the recovery of a blue-coloured trolley bag belonging to another occupant of the vehicle.

Suspected crystal meth (methamphetamine) tablets weighing 10.145 kilograms were found in the bag, the police officer said.

'Meth' tablets are banned in India.

Two of the three occupants of the vehicle were arrested, and a preliminary investigation suggested that they are part of an interstate and cross-border drug trafficking syndicate, the officer said.

"The total value of the seized contraband is estimated to be around Rs 51.13 crore", ANTF chief Vikash Kumar told PTI.

The arrested persons hail from Mizoram, he said.

A case has been registered at the ANTF police station, and an investigation is underway to establish the forward and backward linkages related to the seizure, the officer added.