'India is about 50 years behind China in the quest to eliminate illiteracy. At this point of time, about a third of India's working age population has never been to school and on current trajectories, even 20 years from now, about almost a fifth of India's working age population will not ever have had any formal education -- not even one year of schooling.'
Senator John McCain, the ranking Republican on the powerful Senate Armed Services Committee, has warned that despite all of America's military operations in Afghanistan, and the claim by Pentagon officials that Al Qaeda and the Taliban is on the run, a failing and instable Pakistan with terrorist safe havens within its borders, remain a key challenge.
In a scathing indictment of Pakistan for continuing to host terrorist safe havens within its borders, United States Senator Carl Levin, chairman of the powerful Senate Armed Services Committee, took strong issue with senior Pentagon officials.
Two Indian American scientists -- Dr Romesh C Batra and Dr Kodi S Ravichandran -- were among the four Outstanding Scientists of 2011 honoured with the Governor's Award for Science Innovation by Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell.
A report by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace has reinforced the Obama administration's campaign to lobby the Indian government to award the $11 billion contract for 126 medium multi-role combat aircraft to US manufacturers.
The United States has assured India of providing 'fair solution' to Indian students affected by the shut down of California-based Tri Valley University, which has been accused of a massive visa fraud.
US Commerce Secretary has appointed Purnima Voria to a new National Advisory Council
Satya M Akula, co-founder and chief operating officer, Amyx, Inc and partner, New Angel Capital LLC, has taken over as president of The Indus Entrepreneurs, DC-chapter - the most influential Indian-American entrepreneur organisation in the country - for 2011.
Dr Vijay Sazawal, director, government programs, United States Enrichment Corporation, Inc, a leading supplier of enriched uranium fuel for commercial nuclear power plants worldwide, has been appointed by Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke to serve on the Civil Nuclear Trade Advisory Committee for two years.
Parita Shah, one of United States Commerce Secretary Gary Locke's closest advisers, is among the several second-generation Indian Americans serving in the Obama administration.
The GSA is the federal government's real estate and procurement manager, and as Regional Administrator, Kalayil will be responsible for an inventory of 128 federal buildings, 986 leased locations and 11 US land ports of entry on the Canadian border.
On the eve of US Commerce Secretary Gary Locke's trip to India next week as the head of a high-tech trade mission of 23 American companies, including Fortune 500 heavyweights and also several small and medium enterprises, the Department of Commerce has moved expeditiously to implement the export control initiatives to facilitate high tech trade with India.
In a scathing indictment of Pakistan's perfidy in the US-led war on terror in Afghanistan, the former Director of the Afghan National Security Directorate, Amrullah Saleh asserted that since 9/11 the Pakistani military has continued to direct, fund and protect the Afghan Taliban.
Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Republican from Florida, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committtee, personally handed over to visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao a letter she had sent President Barack Obama prior to his summit with Hu, urging him to raise US concerns over Beijing's policies, including its 'deplorable human rights record."
As the Obama administration pulled out all the stops to welcome Chinese President Hu Jintao, literally rolling out the red carpet and United States Vice President Joe Biden for the first time going on to the tarmac to receive a foreign leader, a top foreign policy analyst hoped that the American President will push China to facilitate a rapprochement between India and Pakistan.
"Imagine a jihadist State with the fastest growing nuclear arsenal in the world," Bruce Riedel said. "And, if that doesn't scare you at night, you are watching too many horror movies."
Erstwhile Central Intelligence Agency veteran Bruce Riedel, who was the co-chair of the first Af-Pak (Afghanistan-Pakistan Strategic Review) of the Obama administration, had said that the US Af-Pak policy has got in only half right, because while you can't deal with Afghanistan without dealing with Pakistan, by the same token you can't deal with Pakistan without dealing with India -- meaning you've got to address Islamabad's paranoia over New Delhi.
Srinagar-born Dr Vijay Sazawal, 64, of Bethesda, Maryland, who has over 35 years of professional experience in the nuclear industry covering the entire fuel cycle, has been appointed by United States Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke to serve on the Civil Nuclear Trade Advisory Committee for a period of two years.
The India Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies -- a leading Washington, DC think tank -- will be occupied by Karl F Inderfurth, erstwhile Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs in the Clinton Administration.
United States Congressmen Ed Royce, California Republican, and Joe Crowley, New York Democrat, have been both unanimously selected to co-chair the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans.