India firms say US denying visas

President Obama is to meet Indian PM Manmohan Singh during his visit

US is rejecting a growing number of visa applications and visa interviews are bordering on interrogations, Indian information technology companies say.

Nasscom, an umbrella organisation of IT firms, said it had written to the US ambassador to convey its concern.

The Indian government has also been informed of the matter, it said. The US embassy is yet to respond.

President Barack Obama begins a three-day India visit on Saturday. It is not known if the issue will come up then.

"Nasscom... said it had received complaints from member-companies and had taken up the issue 'appropriately' with the US embassy in New Delhi," the Times of India newspaper reported.

"The letter is said to have pointed out that the firms affected are all 'perfectly good companies' which have 'met all guidelines'," the paper added.

ISSUES TO BE TAKEN UP DURING OBAMA'S VISITIndia to ask questions on US's planned exit from Afghanistan next yearDelhi's concern that Islamabad uses the US military aid against IndiaIndia will seek end of sanctions on US exports of 'dual-use' technology which could also be used to build long-range missilesDelhi to seek Obama's support for a permanent seat in the UN Security CouncilFee increase for H1B visasObama's stand on outsourcing of jobs to IndiaRise of China and implications for IndiaIndia activists expect PM Manmohan Singh to raise the Bhopal issue

India and the US have forged close trade ties in recent years. In 2008, the two countries signed a deal for civil nuclear co-operation.

But, there has been growing concern in Washington that outsourcing to cities such as Bangalore - the IT hub in southern India - is worsening unemployment in the US.

President Obama recently spoke out against outsourcing of American jobs to countries like India and offered tax breaks for those creating jobs in the US.

Also recently, the US Border Security Bill hiked the fees for H1B and L1 business visas, leading to protests from Indian IT firms.

The issues of outsourcing and visa fees are expected to come up in talks during President Obama's visit.

But analysts say the president's drubbing in the mid-term elections is expected to tie his hands when it comes to bold policy moves on India.

India's Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao has said Delhi was not expecting any "big bang" results from the visit.

She said there would be positive outcomes, but it was not time for another big bang.

Mr Obama arrives in Mumbai on Saturday morning where he is due to meet Indian business leaders and address a meeting of the India-US business council.

In Delhi, he is due to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and address a joint session of the Indian parliament.

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Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-south-asia-11691575

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