'Expect her to visit': US second lady Usha Vance's ancestral village expresses gratitude on her India trip

A wave of pride and anticipation has gripped Vadluru village in Andhra Pradesh’s East Godavari district, as Usha Vance — wife of US Vice President JD Vance — arrived in India on Monday with her husband and their three children.

Usha Vance, whose family traces its roots back to Vadluru, is accompanying the Vice President on a largely personal four-day visit to the country. The US Second Lady’s connection to the lush, river-fed region of Godavari has sparked excitement among residents, even though the village doesn’t feature on her official itinerary.

“We all came to know that Usha has come to Delhi today. We, on behalf of the residents of Vadluru, eagerly expect her to come to this village to see her ancestors, temples… we are all eagerly waiting for her,” said PV Ramanaiah, a local resident.


Another villager, V Badrinath, echoed the sentiment. “Since Vadluru is the US Second Lady's ancestral village, everybody here is elated and hopes that she will visit them.”

Former village sarpanch P Srinivasa Raju revealed that officials had been frequenting Vadluru for the past 10 days to collect details about her family’s ties. “We didn’t know this would be such a sudden programme,” he said, adding that had the village been informed earlier, elders would have tried to meet her in Hyderabad or Chennai.

“We would have sought help from Tourism Minister Kandula Durgesh to reach out to the Chief Minister,” Raju said.

C Santhamma, a 90-year-old relative of Usha Vance, expressed pride in her achievements. “I would love to meet her and even invite her to speak to students at my college,” she said.

(With inputs from PTI)