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According to US embassy officials, all the three biggest users of the H-1B visa programme in 2007 were Indian companies -- Infosys, Wipro and Satyam Computers. These companies performing computer and software contract work in the US and bring skilled workers from India to the US.
Although certain US lawmakers demand that the H-1B visa programme should be suspended unless concerns of the American citizens are addressed, the government is not considering it.
Evan A Feigenbaum, Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs, who was in Kolkata on Wednesday, said the US government always increased the number of people entering the country with working visas.
The White House is planning to increase the number of visa issuance in India by 20 per cent in 2008 in spite of certain objections being raised about the misuse of H-1B visa programme by the Indian firms. The visas are intended to help the US companies to fill up shortages of employees with sophisticated skills, bring foreign workers, preferably with masters' degrees or doctorates, for an initial period of three years.
Douglas G Kelly, director of public affairs under the US consulate general in Kolkata, said there is an annual quota of accepting 65,000 temporary work visas or H-1Bs from employers in the US. The Federal authorities from Tuesday have started accepting petitions from employers for this year, which starts from October 1.
But technology companies, like that of Bill Gates' Microsoft, said the limits of H-1B visa are making it a problem of attracting and retaining high-skilled immigrants, Kelly said. He said while certain lawmakers are demanding decrease in the number of H-1 B visa, Bill Gates has been in favour of increasing it. In fact, a National Foundation for American Policy study revealed that H-1B workers generated jobs for American workers as companies enhanced their employment by five workers for supporting each worker.
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