Biden administration proposes massive hike in immigration fees including H-1B visas

The USCIS said the new fees would allow the immigration agency to more fully recover its operating costs, reestablish and maintain timely case processing, and prevent the accumulation of future case backlogs. | Photo Credit: AP The Biden administration has proposed a massive hike in immigration fees, including the much sought-after H-1B visas for high-skilled … Read more

Beds run out at Beijing hospital as COVID-19 brings more sick people

People wearing face masks buy food at a bazaar outside a commercial office building in Beijing, on January 4, 2023. | Photo Credit: AP Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. The Chuiyangliu hospital in the city’s … Read more

Eight found fatally shot in Utah home, including 5 children

Law enforcement officials stand near the Enoch, Utah, home where eight family members were found dead from gunshot wounds on Jan. 4, 2023. | Photo Credit: AP Eight people including five children were found dead from gunshot wounds in a southern Utah home Wednesday, according to authorities who did not provide more details or a … Read more

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. cites stable ties on visit to Beijing

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. review the honour guard during a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, on January 4, 2023. | Photo Credit: Reuters Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has cited stable ties with China during a visit to Beijing in which he … Read more

Making every effort to reduce visa interview appointment time in India: U.S.

We recognize that some applicants may still face extended visa wait times, and we’re making every effort to further reduce visa interview appointment wait times as quickly as possible in India and around the world, the U.S. said. | Photo Credit: Getty Images The United States is making every effort to reduce the waiting time … Read more

Morning Digest | India, France to hold strategic dialogue today; Cabinet panel clears scheme to upgrade Prasar Bharati, and more

National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval. | Photo Credit: ANI India, France to hold strategic dialogue on Thursday India and France are expected to take stock of their overall security cooperation during a high-level dialogue on Thursday, January 5, 2022. BJP to attend Election Commission demonstration on remote voting EVMs The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) … Read more

India, France to hold strategic dialogue on Thursday

National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval. File photo | Photo Credit: ANI India and France are expected to take stock of their overall security cooperation during a high-level dialogue on Thursday, January 5, 2022. The two sides will deliberate on wide-ranging bilateral and global issues at the 36th India-France strategic dialogue, according to the Ministry … Read more

India tried to defuse Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant situation: EAM Jaishankar 

India tried to defuse the situation around Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and quietly helped in the grain deal between Moscow and Kyiv, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar has said even as he vehemently rejected charges of New Delhi being a war profiteer over its procurement of discounted Russian oil. The External Affairs Minister also … Read more

Kevin McCarthy fails anew in bid for U.S. House Speaker

Republican leader Kevin McCarthy failed anew to win the House speakership on January 4 in dramatic fourth round voting as the chamber plunged into Day 2 of the new Congress with no end in sight for the political chaos that GOP conservatives have created. Mr. McCarthy fared no better than he did on opening day … Read more