'Build here. Scale here. Die here': IIT alumni group urges fair US immigration policies amid green card visa cycle

An IIT alumni group expression concern on the recent developments in the US regarding the PERM programme and the treatment of skilled Indian professionals on H-1B visas and called for fair and transparent application of policies.

PanIIT Alumni India said that the latest visa developments are a "reminder to our own community" since a career built on a visa is a career built on uncertain ground.

The association expressed concern on the treatment of skilled Indian professionals on H-1B visas after the US suspended Microsoft, Adobe and six other IT services companies from the Permanent Labour Certification (PERM) program, leaving some foreign workers with fewer options to move from temporary work visas to permanent residency.


Also read: TCS, Infosys, Wipro & others suspended from PERM green card program. What is it & how is it different from H1-B?

"We respect the sovereign right of every nation to shape its immigration policy. However, we urge that such policy be applied fairly, transparently, and without stigmatising a community of professionals whose contributions to the American economy and society are well documented," it said in a statement.

For over 50 years, Indian engineers and technologists a large number of them IIT alumni have been among the most productive contributors to US research and industry and have built products, filed patents, founded companies, and created jobs on American soil, the alumni body said.

To characterise them collectively as "indentured servants" is neither accurate nor fair, PanIIT Alumni India said.

"The ecosystem that once compelled our brightest minds to leave the absence of world-class research opportunities, deep-tech infrastructure, and patient capital is no longer what it was," the group said, adding that India now offers the challenges and opportunities that were once only available abroad.

Also read: India reacts to US' PERM move against IT cos Infosys to Wipro, says Vance's 'indentured servants' comments 'unwarranted'

The IIT alumni group made the following appeal to the global IIT diaspora: From Silicon Valley to the Indus Valley build here, scale here, contribute here. This is not a rejection of the world. It is an invitation to come home to a nation that has arrived.

"For decades, we celebrated when our brightest minds left for American shores. It is time we asked what we lost in the process. A visa was never a stable foundation for a career, and this week's events prove it. The IIT covenant was nation before self. The most exciting problems - and the greatest impact - now await our engineers at home. Build here. Scale here. Die here," said Prabhat Kumar, IRS, Chairman, PanIIT Alumni India.