WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): In recognition of his contribution in the defense sector, Indian American chief executive of General Atomics Global Corporation Vivek Lall has been selected for the prestigious Entrepreneur Leadership Awards by the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce. Established in 1968, the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce (IACC) is the apex bi-lateral Chamber synergizing India-US economic engagement. Lall, 53, has been selected for the ‘Global Leader in Defense and Aviation Sector’ award category, which would be presented virtually during an awards ceremony on Friday. Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Madhavrao Scindia will be the chief guest at the event. Lall, who has played a key role in enhancing defense trade in various capacities in Boeing, Lockheed Martin and now General Atomics, was recently honored by the Governor of Kentucky as a Kentucky Colonel, which is the highest title of honor bestowed by the State. Kentucky Colonel is the most well-known honorary colonelcies conferred by United States governors. Former US presidents George Bush, Jimmy Carter, Lynden Johnson, Ronald Reagan are some others that have been conferred this honor.
Tag: Indo-American Chamber of Commerce
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Indian American Vivek Lall Named Chief of General Atomics Global Corporation
SAN DIEGO (TIP): Dr. Vivek Lall, probably the most known face in the Indian aerospace and defense industry and the most prominent Indian-American who played key roles in some major Indo-US defense deals between India and the US, will be the chief of General Atomics Global Corporation, based in California.
A formal statement from General Atomics said, “ with Dr Lall’s expertise, GA Global will expand its global footprint for managing sales, service, and international industrial collaboration in strategically important countries like Japan, Australia, the UAE, and others.”
In his previous stint with the US major as chief executive of strategic development from Vivek Lall was instrumental in the drive to first market and then advance on the sales plan for missile-capable unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to Indian armed forces. It may be recalled that GA ASI in June 2017 had informed that the US government had approved a $2 billion sale of 22 MQ-9B SeaGuardian UAVs to India for the Indian Navy.
Dr. Vivek Lall has been the major force in concluding major Indian defense procurements including 24 MH-60R Multi-Role Helicopters from Lockheed Martin, 10 C17s worth $4 billion, P-8I Anti-submarine warfare aircrafts (eight and then four) worth $3 billion, 28 Apache helicopters and 15 Chinooks worth $5 billion, and 22 Harpoon missiles worth $200 million. An asset to both India and USA, Vivek has been influential in shaping US’s defenses exports and fulfilling India’s defiance needs. He was appointed to the US Federal Aviation Advisory Committee in 2018, where he represents the viewpoints of defenses technology organizations in the NextGen Advisory Committee of the Department of Transportation. The Aviation Advisory Committee provides information, advice, and recommendations to the Secretary of Transportation on ensuring the competitiveness of the U.S. aviation industry and its capability to address the evolving transportation needs, challenges, and opportunities of the global economy.
Dr. Lall has been also recognized as one of the world’s top scientists of the twentieth century by Cambridge. He was also the President of the Mathematical Association of America. He was also affiliated with the United Nations in New York to advise on Broadband and Cyber Security issues for challenges within the global community and provide services that will help address them. In India he was appointed the Chairman of the Indo-US Strategic Dialogue by the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce in August 2011, was Distinguished Fellow at Observer Research Foundation and also served as Chairman of the Defense Committee of The Association of Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India(ASSOCHAM).
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Indian-American Helps with Life Saving Medication during Hurricane Harvey
HOUSTON, TX (TIP): When a Texas hospital called to request a rare disease medication, an Indian-American CEO of a pharmacy firm got it shipped by to Houston from Orlando by sending his employee to pick it up as all logistics company were unable to deliver overnight due to Hurricane Harvey.
Harish Katharani, founder and CEO of Southside Group of Companies, explained Impavido – only oral treatment drug used for critically ill patients with Leishmaniasis – costs about USD 49,000 and hence is not readily stocked by pharmacies.
Mr. Kathrani sent one of his employee to get the drug shipped to Texas Children’s Hospital in the midst of Harvey, the most powerful hurricane to hit the US mainland in 13 years. Harvey has left a trail of destruction across Texas, pummeling the region with heavy rains. Around 13 million people have been battling “catastrophic” flooding in Texas.
In another incident, Medicare Advantage provider TexanPlus contacted Southside’s Texas Medical Centre to inquire if the firm could provide services to their patients during the hurricane weekend.
Despite not being contracted by this health maintenance organization, Southside readily volunteered to provide healthcare services to their patients during this crisis.
TexanPlus circulated an internal memo letting their case workers know about Southside’s availability during Hurricane Harvey.
The Indo-American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston’s Executive Director Jagdip Ahluwalia stated that he was proud that one of their Chamber members was going above and beyond the call of duty to serve the community in this hour of need.
Southside is a pharmacist owned and operated company established in 1992. They ship specialty medication to over 35 states. Their pharmacies will remain open during the weekend’s regular hours but their pharmacist and nurses are on call 24/7 to help Texans tide over the troubles case by the hurricane.
Mr. Katharani, who came to the US in 1972, is a generous donor to various charitable organizations such as MS Society, Hep-C Clinic, Liver Foundations as well as to Cancer and HIV research institutions.
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Indian-American Entrepreneurs Awarded In US
Four prominent Indian Americans and three Americans have been awarded by a Houston-based chamber of commerce for their outstanding work as entrepreneurs and “building bridges” between India and the US.
The awards were given by Indo-American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston (IACCGH) at a gala event in Houston.
The “Young Professional of the Year” was presented to Malisha Patel, 36, who is the Chief Operating Officer of Memorail Hermann Hospital Sugarland.
Woman entrepreneur award was presented to Revati Puranik, CFO, Worldwide Oilfield Machine, a company that specialises in manufacturing oil and gas equipment.
Bhavesh (Bob) Patel, CEO LyondellBasell was awarded Business leader of the year, while entrepreneur of the year was given to Abezaar S Tayabji, founder and CEO Shipcom Wireless.
Lifetime Achievement awards were presented to three Americans- Marvin Odum, former Shell USA President, Richard Huebner, former president Houston Minority Supplier Development and Dr John Mendelsohn, former President M D Anderson Cancer Center, for bridging barriers between India and USA.
A gala event themed “Building Bridges” was attended by over 700 guests, comprising top business leaders, prominent community members, Counsil General of India Dr Anupam Ray, University of Houston Chancellor and President Dr Renu Khator.
Various elected officials like Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, Congressman Al Green and Pete Olson, Harris County Judge Ed Emmett, Mayor of Houston Sylvester Turner, Council member Jack Christie, City of Houston Controller Chris Brown were also present.
The chief guest and keynote speaker was Bruce Culpepper, President, Shell USA.
Executive Director of IACCGH Jagdip Ahluwalia said the Chamber has connected entrepreneurs, doctors, educators, technocrats in an informal setting to create lasting business relationships.
Consul General Dr Ray in speech said it is a good time to be a diplomat in the US and this is evident from the fact that a few days ago on the same day the US Secretary of State was in India and the Indian Defense Minister was in Washington.
Both countries were talking about issues like defense, cybersecurity, increase in trade, he said.
“When you do business in India you are essentially doing business with a country that is more like the US than many countries in the world”, Ray said.
Houston Mayor Sylvestor Turner said the Indian presence in Houston makes it the most diverse city in America.
More than 700 companies in Houston do business with India.
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Nitin Gadkari’s visit to give new momentum to India’s ties with the US in infrastructure sector
WASHINGTON (TIP): Indo-US cooperation in the vital infrastructure sector will get a new impetus when Road Transport, Highways & Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari arrives here July 9 for official talks with his counter-part US Secretary of Transportation, Anthony Foxx on a wide range of projects of mutual interest.
Gadkari will be particularly looking for widening and deepening the scope of Indo-US cooperation in innovative technologies for improving highway development, road engineering, road safety and development of green fuels in automobile sector and electric vehicles.
During his interaction with the US captains of trade and industry and pioneers in the maritime sector, Gadkari will highlight investment opportunities in the Indian maritime sector and invite US investments in building ports, port-led industrialization, coastal economic zones, construction of new berths/terminals in existing ports like JNPT, Mumbai and Kandla Ports, capital and maintenance dredging, mechanization, hinterland connectivity and evacuation infrastructure, ship building, ship repairing and ship recycling.
Gadkari has envisaged 50-60 Billion USD foreign investment for infrastructure and another 100 Billion USD towards industrial development for port-led economic growth in the maritime sector and inland waterways, water transport, coastal and cruise shipping and solar and wind energy generation to further boost the country’s growth momentum. He hopes to add two percentage points in India’s GDP through creating world-class infrastructure. India clocked 7.6 per cent growth rate in 2015-16 when there was a global slowdown.
More than 150 projects were identified under the ambitious Sagarmala Programme at the recent Maritime India Summit in Mumbai. India has 7,500 Kms. long coastline, 212 ports, 70 coastal districts, one Billion tone cargo handling currently, 111 waterways and 90 % of export-import trade (by volume) handled at ports. There is a huge potential for tapping hundreds of islands and lighthouses for tourism.
Gadkari will hold bilateral talks with the US Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx in Washington on July 11 aimed at strengthening and expanding India’s relations with the US by enhancing bilateral cooperation in infrastructure sector.
At the US department of Transportation, Gadkari will witness Modal Presentations by Federal Highway Administration, US Maritime Administration and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
His itinerary in Washington includes a talk on “A window into India’s Infrastructure Development “organized by Atlantic Council, a Washington-based think tank.
The Indian delegation accompanying Gadkari will give presentations on port-led development, inland waterways development and highway infrastructure, logistics at a luncheon roundtable with investors and infrastructure companies arranged by the US India Business Council (USIBC). Gadkari will be accompanied by Alok Srivastava, Additional Secretary (Shipping), Rohit Kumar Singh, Joint Secretary (Highways),Abhay Damley, Joint Secretary (Transport), PS Vaibhav Dange & OSD (Shipping) Rajgopal.
The Indian ambassador to the US Arun K Singh will be hosting a dinner in hour of the visiting union minister where he will meet US Congressmen and senior US officials and prominent Indian community members.
During his visit to New York on the second leg of his week-long official trip, Gadkari will visit New York City state transport department to understand intelligent transport management, city traffic management and control centre and other technology- based transport solutions.
In the commercial capital of the US, Gadkari will also have a series of interactions with investors at the meets organized by the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce, J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs and US Indian Business Council etc.
Some of these interactions will be a follow up of the deliberations at the Maritime India Summit in Mumbai where a large number of US companies had evinced keen interest inpromoting bilateral cooperation with India in Maritime sector.
Gadkari will invite US companies for technology cooperation in road and highway building, road engineering, innovations in automobile sector, road safety and green fuels.
After a two-day stay in New York where the Overseas Friends of BJP have organized a reception in his honour, Gadkari will visit St. Louis to understand Inland Waterways System on world famous Mississippi River by undertaking a boat trip.
On the next leg of his visit to San Francisco, Gadkari will have talks with senior officials from the California Transportation Agency, and departments of International Affairs and business development.
He will also visit Tesla, manufacturers of quality electric cars, and hold a meeting with investors and interact with TiECharter members over dinner. TiE is global organization of entrepreneurs with over 12,000 members.
Gadkari will have interaction and visit Oracle and Bloom Energy and later attend a community reception organized by the OFBJP. The OFBJP in Los Angeles has organized a reception in his hour.
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India-US trade will be USD1 trillion by 2030: Nish Acharya
WASHINGTON (TIP): A book “The India-U.S. Partnership: $1 Trillion by 2030 authored by Nish Acharya, an Indian American university professor and senior advisor at Northeastern University in Boston,? was launched recently in Bengaluru by Gateway House,
Acharya, who earlier held senior position as the director of innovation and entrepreneurship in the Barack Obama administration envisions trade between the two countries to rise multifold from $120 billion to $1 trillion. The Author has citied 31 case studies of relationship between India and US involving strategic collaboration, corporate and non-profit models and emerging technologies.
“The book is released weeks ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the Silicon Valley in September where he would address technology entrepreneurs and the Indian diaspora,” its publisher Gateway House said in a statement.
US Ambassador to India Richard Verma, Manipal education group chairman and former Infosys director T.V. Mohandas Pai and Goldman Sachs India managing director Bunty Bohra spoke on the projected upswing in the India-US trade over the next 15 years.
“Technology has presented a springboard for a strong India-US partnership. Indian American co-founders form 33 percent of Silicon Valley start-ups and account for 7 percent of American physicians,” the statement said.
“To tackle India’s development challenges, it is essential to deploy talented individuals and technical experts in areas like infrastructure, healthcare, energy and agriculture,” the statement quoted the author as saying.
“India needs to build a ramp for poverty alleviation and enable the 42 percent of its people living under the World Bank poverty line of USD1.25 a day to access the services of non-government organizations, social entrepreneurs and micro-finance organizations,” Acharya said.
Though these organizations are able to identify problems and scale solutions, they are unable to build sustainable systems and expertise to achieve a lasting impact.”
India needs to take advantage of next generation technologies such as synthetic biology, 3D printing, mobile, social and big data, to create an industrial base from which products and services can be sold and jobs created,” he said.
The event was held in collaboration with United Way of Bengaluru, Indo-American Chamber of Commerce, and Citizens and Equal Innovation Institute.
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India-US trade will be USD1 trillion by 2030 | Indian American Policy expert Nish Acharya’s book
Bengaluru (TIP) August 5 : The book “The India-U.S. Partnership: $1 Trillion by 2030″ was launched here by Gateway House, authored by Nish Acharya, an Indian American university professor and senior advisor at Northeastern University in Boston.Acharya, who earlier held senior position as the director of innovation and entrepreneurship in the Barack Obama administration envisions trade between the two countries to rise multifold from $120 billion to $1 trillion. The Author has citied 31 case studies of relationship between India and US involving strategic collaboration, corporate and non-profit models and emerging technologies.
“The book is released weeks ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the Silicon Valley in September where he would address technology entrepreneurs and the Indian diaspora,” its publisher Gateway House said in a statement.
Modi is scheduled to visit the US to address the UN General Assembly in New York in September, as he did in his first year in office in 2014.
US Ambassador to India Richard Verma, Manipal education group chairman and former Infosys director T.V. Mohandas Pai and Goldman Sachs India managing director Bunty Bohra spoke on the projected upswing in the India-US trade over the next 15 years.
“Technology has presented a springboard for a strong India-US partnership. Indian American co-founders form 33 percent of Silicon Valley start-ups and account for 7 percent of American physicians,” the statement said.
“To tackle India’s development challenges, it is essential to deploy talented individuals and technical experts in areas like infrastructure, healthcare, energy and agriculture,” the statement quoted the author as saying.
“India needs to build a ramp for poverty alleviation and enable the 42 percent of its people living under the World Bank poverty line of USD1.25 a day to access the services of non-government organisations, social entrepreneurs and micro-finance organisations,” Acharya said.
Though these organisations are able to identify problems and scale solutions, they are unable to build sustainable systems and expertise to achieve a lasting impact.”
India needs to take advantage of next generation technologies such as synthetic biology, 3D printing, mobile, social and big data, to create an industrial base from which products and services can be sold and jobs created,” he said.
The event was held in collaboration with United Way of Bengaluru, Indo-American Chamber of Commerce, and Citizens and Equal Innovation Institute.
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How Houston is becoming the new hub for Indian-American community in Texas
HOUSTON (TIP): Move over New Jersey and Fremont, California. With a population of 150,000 Indian-Americans, Houston, Texas, is emerging as a new hub for the community. “A couple of decades back many Indian professionals had come to Houston, including doctors who came to work at the famous Texas Medical Center and engineers who came to join Nasa’s Johnson Space Center. But now members of the community have come of age with many of them becoming entrepreneurs and setting up different ventures, including those in manufacturing and energy and petrochemicals,” says Jagdip Ahluwalia, a Houston-based businessman, who was a faculty member of the Birla Institute of Technology, Mesra, before moving to the US.
An example is Piping Technology & Products, which was a set up in 1978 by Durga D Agrawal in his garage. Today, the company has a wide industrial product range, including pipe supports, expansion joints and shock control devices and more. The company has grown through acquisitions of Sweco Fab, Fronek Anchor/Darling, Pipe Shields and US Bellows.”
Piping Tech is among the largest employers in the greater Houston area and its founder is a well-known businessman and influencer, who supports charitable and philanthropic activities,” says Ahluwalia.
He adds that there are many other Indian-American owned companies such as Vinmar International, a petrochemicals company and hospitality and food services majors in Houston. “And members of the community are now also playing an important role in public life and community services, and are visible in various leadership positions in Houston,” says Ahluwalia, who is executive director and a founder member of the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston.
Ravi K Sandill, judge of the 127th district court in Harris County of Houston, became the first South Asian to hold the position in the US while another Indian-American, Himesh Gandhi, was elected to the Sugar Land City Council in 2012. Nandita Berry, an Indian-American attorney from Houston, was the former secretary of state of Texas.
“Indians are now among the most-respected communities in the Greater Houston area with many making an impact in public policy. We now have a place at the table and there are Indian faces in different administrative and community organizations,” says Sanjay Ramabhadran, vice president at CP&Y, a Texas-based infrastructure consulting firm.
He was honored as one of the 10 outstanding young Americans in 2012 by the US Junior Chamber. He adds that the chancellor of the University of Houston, Dr Renu Khator, who had helped make UH a tier-1 university and generate huge revenues, is a prominent member of the community.
But it’s not just in business and public life that Indians in Houston are coming of age. Members of the community are also involved in philanthropic and charitable causes. “Sugar Land city in Houston has emerged as a hub for Indian-Americans.
There are a large number of Indian restaurants across Greater Houston and the city is very friendly towards those arriving from India,” says Ashok Garg, who runs his company Allied Exports and is president of the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce. He is associated with various community activities including serving on the board of Literacy Advance of Houston and is currently on the board of Lighthouse of Houston, a non-profit dedicated to helping the visually impaired.
A recent business delegation to India from Houston, led by Houston mayor Annise D Parker, had several meetings with key business leaders in energy, engineering and government. Bobby Singh, principal at Isani Consultants that offers civil engineering and construction services in Houston, said in regard to the mission, “Houston is a diverse, immigrant-friendly city where Indo-Americans like myself share in the city’s success and we have a mayor who recognizes the importance of nurturing those international ties.”
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US Bonhomie for India: US Secretaries Storm New Delhi
The recent visits of Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker, Secretary of State John Kerry, and Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel are being seen as demonstrative of the resurgence of U.S. interest in India as both countries try to strengthen ties.
NEW DELHI (TIP): It may be a coincidence that the Union cabinet announced August 6, a day before US Secretary of Defense arrived in New Delhi, the decision to allow 49% FDI in Defense. Also announced were the cabinet decisions to allow 100% FDI in Close on the heels of the visits to India by U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel arrived in India Thursday, August 7, for a three-day visit.
The fact that these high-profile trips by American officials have occurred so close to one another indicates the resurgence of American interest in India. Furthermore, the emergence of a strong, decisive, and reformist government under the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in India has suddenly put India back on the U.S. agenda. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi is keen on reminding the world that India is a large country that cannot be ignored and whose interests must be taken seriously.
Secretary Hagel is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and India’s Defense and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Friday, August 8 as well as U.S. and Indian defense company executives. Talks are expected to be fruitful for both countries. Hagel is in India to strengthen defense ties between the two nations. Although the two nations have been moving closer over the past decade, they have not become as close as some U.S. policymakers would have liked.
In fact, events of the past year, including India’s support for Russia in Crimea and the Devyani Khobragade case, show the limitations of a U.S.-India relationship. Nonetheless, both countries are interested in strengthening defense ties when possible, as they still share many common interests, including stability in Afghanistan, as well as concerns over China. It is unlikely that India and the U.S. will remain on anything but cordial terms, despite some occasional bumps. Secretary Hagel himself recognized this, stating that U.S. relationships with new partners in Asia represented both opportunities and challenges.
The Wall Street Journal quotes Rear Admiral John Kirby, the Pentagon press secretary, as saying that “Secretary Hagel’s meetings will focus on the United States’ and India’s converging interests in the Asia Pacific, our common interests in Afghanistan and initiatives to strengthen our defense cooperation, including military exercises, defense, trade, co-production and co-development and research.” One of Secretary Hagel’s goals is to seek more defense projects between the two countries.
There is much scope for this. India is the largest importer of U.S. arms, although it still imports up to 75 percent of its arms from Russia. The two countries are close to finalizing a $1.4 billion deal in which India will buy at least 22 U.S. Apache and 15 Chinook helicopters made by Boeing, as well as other aircraft. Discussion of this deal will be at the top of Hagel’s agenda during his visit. India is also keen on bringing in more foreign investment in its defense sector, so it can meet more of its defense needs indigenously.
India is becoming increasingly ambitious on this front, building, for example, ever-larger warships in India. U.S. investment in India’s defense sector could bolster India’s ability to meet its security needs and be another way in which both the U.S. and India cooperate and profit together. Hagel may also discuss a U.S. offer to jointly develop and produce the next generation of the Javelin missile in India for the Indian market as well for export.
Analysts are optimistic on the outcome of Hagel’s visit to India. According to Vivek Lall, a former Boeing executive and current chairman of the aerospace and defense committee of the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce, “this visit could be the inflection point of deeper defense ties between both countries, specifically to help boost defense production and state-of-the-art technology absorption.” -
The Indo American Chamber Of Commerce Hosts A Farewell Party For Consul General Prabhu Dayal
The Indo American Chamber of Commerce hosted a farewell party for the retiring Consul General Prabhu Dayal at K&L Gates offices in Manhattan February 26. The event was participated by a cross section of the Indian Americans and their American friends. The organizers also had Mr. Dayal cut a cake to honor his achievements while he held the office of Consul General at the Indian Consulate in New York.
In his speech, Mr. Rajiv Khanna, president of the IACC highlighted the significant success of Mr. Dayal in strengthening the Indo-American community. He also spoke at length about the leaps and bounds India has achieved economically and attributed Mr. Dayal’s vital role in allowing this growth to be tapped for the Indian Americans too. In his address Mr. Prabhu Dayal commended the performance of the Indian community in the United States. “The Indian community in America has excelled in all fields possible.
Our ties with the USA have never been better. Today India has a goal to achieve excellence in the five E’s– energy, economy, education, empowerment and environment. So it is my sincere request to our community to uphold our values and our strengths and help India prosper in these five areas as desired,” said Dayal. Daryl Rand of Harrison Rand Advertising said, “Our last three missions would not have received the traction they needed if it hadn’t been for the Consul General Prabhu Dayal.
The state of New Jersey would not have benefited from all the work we are doing if not for him. I want to thank him for all his extended support.” Many others, including friends and acquaintances, stepped forward to thank Mr. Dayal personally for his help and support.