'This victory would mean a huge inspiration for the next generation who can say that coming from India I can be anybody I want to be if I work hard and acquire the right skills.' 'They could be the next President, members of the Senate, or another Sundar Pichai.'
'I think of that young baby, still in her diapers, balancing with her arms held up by her mother, a Tamil woman wearing a salwar kameez and a dupatta, seated on a stoop,' recalls Aseem Chhabra.
He is among several leaders of Indian heritage who have ascended to the highest echelon of public service globally.
Hillary Clinton has named a prominent Indian-American civil rights lawyer to lead a team of senior policy advisers who will be charged with moulding her presidential campaign agenda.
Indian-American Kamala D Harris, the attorney general of California, would make prime time address to the Democratic National Convention later on Wednesday.
Three weeks after Election Day the see-saw battle between Democrat Kamala Devi Harris and Republican Steve Cooley for the post of Attorney General of California came to an end on November 24 when Cooley conceded the race in perhaps one of the closest statewide elections in the history of this state.
Harris remembered her late mother Shyamala Gopalan, a cancer researcher and civil rights activist from India, saying she has always carried that lesson from her mother with her throughout her career from serving as the first woman District Attorney of San Francisco, to the first woman Attorney General of California, and the first woman of colour to represent California in the United States Senate.
The State Department has proposed not to issue temporary business visas for H-1B speciality occupations which allowed several companies to send their technology professionals for a short stay to complete jobs on site in the US, a move which could affect hundreds of Indians. The proposal, if finalised, will eliminate any misconception that the "B-1 in lieu of H policy" provides an alternative avenue for foreign professionals to enter the US to perform skilled labour that allows, and potentially even encourages them and their employers to circumvent the restrictions and requirements relating to the H non-immigrant classification established by Congress to protect the US workers, the State Department said.
Dr Anthony Fauci has been named as Chief Medical Adviser to the President on COVID-19, while Dr Rochelle Walensky has been named as Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; and Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith as COVID-19 Equity Task Force Chair.
Harris, 51, whose mother was from Chennai and father from Jamaica, is one among the six Democratic leaders, whom The Washington Post said are the top contenders to bag the party's nomination for the 2020 presidential elections.
In a video, announcing her candidacy for the office, Harris said, "Justice. Decency. Equality. Freedom. Democracy. These aren't just words. They're the values we as Americans cherish. And they're all on the line now. The future of our country depends on you and millions of others lifting our voices to fight for our American values. That's why I'm running for president of the United States."
'There is room for cautious optimism following the Harris anointment that America will return this year to more normal politics after the aberration of the Trump presidency,' points out Shreekant Sambrani.
What the Indian economy looks like next January will influence her view on India, not her genetics, notes Shekhar Gupta.
Chennai-born Pramila Jayapal makes history in Washington state; she is also the first person of colour in the Washington State Democratic delegation.
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