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India Post
February 25, 2011
www.indiapost.com
Clinton assures help to TVU students SRIREKHA CHAKRAVARTY India Post News Service
NEW YORK: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has promised to help the Indian students affected by the closing down of the dubious Tri Valley University in California. In a lengthy telephonic conversation that Indian Minister for External Affairs S.M. Krishna had from New York with her, Secretary Clinton assured of all help and agreed to personally intervene and sort out the matter. The plight of the Indian students of the sham Tri Valley University that was shut down by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) authorities last month was one of the major issues that featured during Minister Krishna's brief visit to New York last week. The Minister, who was officially here to address a UN Security Council meet, brought up the subject in his telephonic conversation with Secretary Clinton on Feb 13, and sought her personal intervention in the matter with a view to ensuring that the interests of the students are protected and their future is not jeopardized. Following the telephonic conversation between the External Affairs Minister and the US Secretary of State, Secretary Clinton also met with Indian Ambassador Meera Shankar in Washington DC on Feb 14 to discuss the matter in detail. Students, TANA delegation meet Krishna
dents' situation. India's Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao and Indian Consul General in NY Prabhu Dayal were also present at the meeting. TANA Secretary Mohan Nannapaneni, Vasu Chinna, and Jai Kureti facilitated the meeting for the benefit of the students who could directly converse with the minister who allocated over 2 hours from his busy schedule after his speech at the UNSC.
After patiently listening to all the students he expressed concern at the continued uncertainty and assured the students that Government of India would request the Department of Homeland Security to expedite the cases of the affected students TVU students living in the New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland and surrounding areas were part of this meeting. These students hailed from different parts of India including Pune and Mumbai in Maharashtra, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh, contrary to popular belief that all the affected students are only
der the impression that the students' issues were mostly resolved. After patiently listening to all the students he expressed concern at the continued uncertainty and assured the students that Government of India would request the Department of Homeland Security to expedite the cases of the affected students. In a letter handed over to the minister, TANA President Jayaram
File photo of External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna with his United States counterpart, Hillary Rodham Clinton
Komati expressed concern at the unresolved status of the students and requested him and his ministry to provide assistance to the students, so that they may return to their classes and salvage the rest of the semester. Komati stated that if the current status quo continues the students would be unable to attend classes for the rest of the school
TANA representatives with External Affairs Minister SM Krishna and Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao
A delegation of members of the Telugu Association of North America (TANA) and a group of 25 Tri Valley students met with Minister Krishna at the New York Palace Hotel in New York City on Feb 13, to apprise him of the stu-
from Andhra. The students took turns to explain each of their current situations in detail and the hardships they are enduring as a result of the closure of TVU. Krishna said that he was un-
Government to intervene and seek from the US government, at least a temporary relief for them. Speaking after the meeting, Nannapaneni said that TANA was glad to have facilitated the in- person meeting between the TVU students and the External Affairs Minister. He stated TANA has been at the forefront of the efforts to help students from the beginning of their nightmare. ICE response to Embassy
year and would also have to spend a lot of money for legal issues. The delegation requested the minister to provide a paid legal assistance to the students as most of them could not afford it. The students requested the Indian
Indian Ambassador Meera Shankar had earlier raised this issue with the Director of ICE emphasizing that innocent students should not suffer and had been assured that the US authorities would handle this with good judgment and common sense.
The problem had also been raised with the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security. In response to the Embassy's efforts, the ICE had put up guidelines on Jan 28 and Feb 8 for the Tri-Valley students on their website at http://www.ice.gov/ sevis/tri-valley-110118.htm. Broadly, the affected students have been advised to call the Student Exchange Visitors Program (SEVP) and provide their specific details. The website also indicates that SEVP will provide options to the students, including the option to depart from the United States without an otherwise possibly applicable bar to re-admission in the future. In response to questions, ICE has further clarified that among the options available to the affected students are: Students who contact SEVP representatives will be advised that they have three options: (i) Report to ICE to be processed for voluntary departure from the United States. This option allows them to leave under their own power on a day of their choosing, to remain in the United States without fear of being arrested while waiting to depart, and keeps their immigration history clean. (ii) Depart the United States on their own; (iii) File for re-instatement with US Citizenship and Immigration Services
India and United States strategic dialogue on April 6 WASHINGTON: India and the US would hold the second round of their Strategic Dialogue in New Delhi on April six during which Secretary of State Hillary Clinton would lead the American side, Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao has announced here. "This time the meeting would take place in New Delhi on April 6. Secretary Hillary Clinton would travel to India for that meeting," Rao told reporters last evening at the end of her three-day US visit. Rao, who was basically here for foreign office consultations, discussed on a wide range of bilateral and regional issues, besides the developments in Egypt. She had a lengthy meeting with Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs William Burns, besides having called on Secretary Clinton at the Foggy Bottom headquarters of the State Department. Rao briefed the US officials on the recent Indo-Pak talks in Bhutan and New Delhi's perspec-
tive on it. Rao said she and Burns discussed the steps being taken by the two nations on implementation of the decisions reached during the India visit of US President Barack Obama in November last year. They also prepared the ground work for the second Strategic Dialogue between the two countries. "I had a very useful meeting with the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton," Rao said. "This visit also afforded the opportunity to take stock of the regional and global situation. The situation in the region has been an object of focus in our discussion, previously also with the United States," she said. Rao also met a number of top officials from the Departments of Defence and Commerce; and the National Security Council at the White House. She also met Senators Richard Lugar and Mark Warner and Congressman Howard Berman at the Capitol Hill.-PTI