Pompeo will assure India on H1B visa cap: official
Washington: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will assure the Indian leadership during his visit to India next week that the Trump administration has no plans to impose a cap on issuing the highly sought-after H-1B visas that are forcing foreign companies to store data locally, an American official said Friday.
The H-1B visa, popular among Indian IT professionals, is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise.
"Indians have contributed under the H-1B programme to the US economy, and I think the Secretary will be able to assure the Indian leadership that we have no plans to place caps on H-1B work visas for nations that are having foreign companies store data locally," a Senior State Department official told reporters during a conference call.
Previewing the trip of Pompeo who will be visiting India from June 25 to June 27, the official said there was a broad review of the H-1B programme underway, but it is not targeted at India.
"It's completely separate from our ongoing discussions with India about the importance of ensuring better trade," the official asserted as he responded to a question on recent media reports that the US was planning to target India on H-1B visa issue.
"I can't comment on what the Secretary's going to raise in his discussion with the prime minister, but obviously, our focus on keeping the pressure on Iran and welcoming India's cooperation in that endeavour. On H-1B, we attach great importance to the US-India relationship," the official said.
The Trump administration has tightened the noose on firms violating H-1B visa rules. President Donald Trump has himself accused many IT companies of abusing the work visas to deny jobs to American workers.
Two years ago, Trump signed the Buy American and Hire American executive order, which seeks to create higher wages and employment rates for US workers and to protect their economic interests by rigorously enforcing and administering our immigration laws.
It directed the Department of Homeland Security, in coordination with other agencies, to advance policies to help ensure H-1B visas are awarded to the most-skilled or highest-paid beneficiaries.
The H-1B visa programme is the main vehicle through which US employers can sponsor skilled foreign workers for admission.
The Senior State Department Official appreciated the steps India has taken to reduce its crude oil imports from Iran.
"I think India shares our concerns about the possibility of a nuclear Iran. It's not something that contributes to regional stability," said the official wishing anonymity.
"And at the same time, we've engaged with the Indians in a conversation as to how to preserve an exemption for the Chabahar Port, which allows India to continue essential humanitarian supplies to Afghanistan as well as to provide Afghanistan with economic alternatives," said the official.
Iran is expected to be on the agenda of Pompeo's talks in India.
"But again, this is an area where we've succeeded in working well with India," the official added.
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Cold conditions prevail in north India; temperatures sub-zero in several parts of J-K
New Delhi (PTI): Cold conditions prevailed across north India on Sunday, with the Amarnath yatra base camp being the coldest recorded place in Jammu and Kashmir at minus 4.3 degrees Celsius and parts of Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan reporting minimum temperatures between three and seven degrees Celsius.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said cold wave conditions were "very likely" to prevail in isolated pockets over Madhya Pradesh, Vidarbha in Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, and Odisha on Monday and Tuesday.
In Delhi, the minimum temperature was recorded at eight degrees, up from 6.8 degrees a day ago and yet 1.6 notches below normal.
The maximum temperature was 24.7 degrees Celsius, 0.1 notch below normal, while the relative humidity was 92 per cent in the morning.
For Monday, the weather department forecast a minimum of 10 degrees Celsius and a maximum of 25 degrees Celsius, with mist expected.
Pollution levels in Delhi remained in the "very poor" category on Sunday, prolonging the spell of toxic air that has hung over its residents for several weeks now. The city logged a 24-hour average AQI of 308.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board, an AQI between 0 and 50 is classified "good", 51 and 100 "satisfactory", 101 and 200 "moderate", 201 and 300 "poor", 301 and 400 "very poor" and 401 and 500 "severe".
Further in the north, the night temperatures in Kashmir rose by several degrees but stayed below the freezing point, officials said.
The Pahalgam resort in south Kashmir, which serves as the base camp for the annual Amarnath yatra, was the coldest recorded place in Jammu and Kashmir as the minimum settled at a low of minus 4.3 degrees Celsius.
The minimum temperature in Srinagar -- the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir -- settled at minus 0.9 degrees Celsius, a rise of 3.2 degrees compared to the previous night.
The gateway town to the valley, Qazigund, recorded a low of minus one degree Celsius, while the minimum settled at minus 0.8 degree Celsius in north Kashmir's Kupwara, and 1.1 degrees Celsius in south Kashmir's Kokernag, according to officials.
The meteorological department said the weather would remain generally cloudy but dry on Sunday, and a brief spell of light snowfall at isolated places in the higher reaches of north and central Kashmir is likely on December 8.
In Himachal Pradesh, The IMD predicted dense fog in parts of the state until Wednesday.
A yellow alert for dense fog was also issued in parts of the reservoir area of the Bhakra dam in Bilaspur district and over some parts of the Balh valley in Mandi district during early morning till Monday.
In Punjab, Faridkot remained the coldest place, with the minimum temperature settling at 4.4 degrees Celsius, while in Haryana, Narnaul saw the lowest temperature at 4.6 degrees Celsius, according to the local meteorological department.
Chandigarh, the common capital of the two states, recorded a minimum temperature of 8.2 degrees Celsius.
In Punjab, Bathinda and Gurdaspur recorded a minimum temperature of 4.6 degrees Celsius, while Ferozepur recorded 6 degrees, Amritsar 6.1 degrees, Ludhiana 6.8 degrees, and Patiala 8.9 degrees.
In Haryana, Bhiwani recorded a low of six degrees, Hisar 6.2 degrees, Sirsa 6.6 degrees, Karnal seven degrees, Rohtak 7.8 degrees, and Ambala 9.8 degrees.
Rajasthan, similarly, reeled under intense cold, the Meteorological Centre here said.
Fatehpur in the Sikar district continued to record the lowest minimum temperature, albeit at 3.5 degrees Celsius, slightly up from 2.3 degrees a day ago.
According to the weather department, Lunkaransar (Bikaner) recorded a low of 5 degrees Celsius, followed by Dausa at 6 degrees, Churu at 6.3 degrees, Vanasthali (Tonk) at 6.4 degrees and Jhunjhunu at 7.2 degrees Celsius on Sunday morning.
The department said a fresh but weak western disturbance is likely to cause partly cloudy skies in some parts of the state over the next few days.
Under its influence, the minimum temperature is expected to rise by two to three degrees Celsius, providing relief from the cold wave, it said.
Meanwhile, in Jharkhand, eight districts recorded minimum temperatures below 10 degrees Celsius, the IMD said, noting a cold wave in parts of the state.
Gumla recorded the lowest temperature in the state at 3.5 degrees Celsius — up from three degrees Celsius — while Khunti logged five degrees Celsius, the IMD weather bulletin stated.
The minimum temperature in Jharkhand's capital, Ranchi, was 7.5 degrees Celsius, while Daltonganj recorded 6.5 degrees and Jamshedpur recorded 9.6 degrees Celsius.
Deputy Director of the Ranchi Meteorological Centre, Abhishek Anand, said, "North-westerly winds prevailing in the lower tropospheric levels over Jharkhand have caused the drop in mercury."
"Dry weather conditions are likely to prevail across the state over the next five days. The minimum temperature may rise by 2–3 degrees Celsius during the next 72 hours," he added.
In West Bengal, the mercury dipped below the 10-degree mark for the first time this winter in the state's plains with Sriniketan in Birbhum districts recording a minimum temperature of 9.8 degrees Celsius on Sunday, the IMD said.
Its forecast for West Bengal suggested dry weather across all districts of West Bengal for the next week, with shallow to moderate fog likely in the northern districts.
Darjeeling was the coldest in the hills at 6.2 degrees Celsius, while the other Himalayan tourist town of Kalimpong was warmer at 10.5 degrees Celsius.
The other places which recorded low night temperatures are Alipurduar (11 degrees), Kalyani (11.4 degrees), Purulia (11.4 degrees) and Panagarh (11.9 degrees).
Kolkata recorded a minimum temperature of 15.2 degrees Celsius, the IMD said, forecasting mist in the morning on Monday.
IMD further predicted dense fog conditions in isolated pockets of Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, and Tripura between December 8 and 12.
It was also "very likely" in parts of west Madhya Pradesh on Monday and in Odisha until Tuesday.
In west India, a gradual fall by two to three degrees over the next three-four days is expected, and no significant change is anticipated thereafter, the IMD said.
