Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

India-US relationship not as strong as it needs to be: Congressman Thanedar

Thanedar, 67, represents the 13th Congressional District of Michigan, which mainly comprises parts of Detroit and its suburbs.

India-US relationship not as strong as it needs to be: Congressman Thanedar

The relationship between India and the US has not been as strong as it needs to be, Indian-American Congressman Shri Thanedar has said, vowing that he will work to strengthen economic ties that benefit both countries and help enhance cooperation between their people.

Thanedar, 67, represents the 13th Congressional District of Michigan, which mainly comprises parts of Detroit and its suburbs. He was sworn in as a member of the US House of Representatives early this month.


He became the fifth Indian-American to be in the current Congress, joining four others: Dr Ami Bera, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Ro Khanna and Pramila Jayapal.

“I think historically, this (India-US relationship) has not been as strong a relationship as it needs to be. We are the two biggest democracies. India has a huge economic power. India now has the leadership of G-20,” Thanedar told PTI.

His first month of in the House has been quite historic as he voted 15 times to elect the Speaker. This week, he was made members of the two influential House committees: Small Business and Homeland Security.

“India has been recognized for its economic power. The United States would benefit. I think, the United States and India each will benefit by having strong mutual relationships: a relationship of trust, a mutual economic relationship, … more trade, mutual trade,” he said.

“We have reached a high watermark now, with my election as the fifth Indian American …I want to use this opportunity to build strong India-United States relationships. I want to work very hard on that, and help commerce help the people of both countries be able to work together with a lot of trust, and a lot of cooperation,” Thanedar said.

Thanedar’s is a rags-to-riches story. He arrived in the US when he was 24-year-old primarily to escape poverty and financial hardship he and his family were facing.

Noting that he grew up in poverty in India, he said his home had no running water, often no electricity and the entire family of six brothers and sisters and parents lived together in one house.

“There were times we didn't know where our next meal is gonna come from. So, having grown up in poverty, having had the struggles that I have had, I understand the struggles of working families, I understand the tough choices that they need to make,” he said.

Indian-Americans have contributed tremendously to the growth and success of the United States and that is great, he said.

“We have some of the best doctors. We have some of the best business people, academicians… But we also have as an immigrant, as a naturalised United States citizen, responsibility beyond economic success, beyond achieving our American dream. We also have an obligation to give back,” he said.

A businessman-turned-politician, Thanedar said he wants to spend the rest of his life in the service of the people of the country.

As a lawmaker, he has said his priorities areas are education, poverty alleviation and health care. The constituency that he comes from has a large number of people living in poverty.

Ultimately, it is improving the quality of life. Covid-19 hit hard the city of Detroit, especially the black and brown communities, he said.

“What Covid did was show us that in a nation as rich as the US, we have poverty, my district has 25 per cent of people at or below the poverty level. We have this huge wealth gap,” he said, as he slammed the Republicans for giving tax breaks to the rich, which has not been helpful as well.

He said the lives of people at the bottom of the economic ladder have not changed for decades.

“We need to really approach it totally differently. We need to create opportunities at the bottom… that means trade education… We need to create a skill set so that people can get good-paying jobs. We need to start working on that, we need to create health insurance, we need to disconnect health insurance from employment,” he said.

Thanedar said regardless of one's employment status, one should have health coverage, and no one should be worried if a big healthcare crisis will make them bankrupt.

“No one has to worry, if they're going to pay for their insulin, or their prescription medicine, or they're going to pay for heat, or they're going to pay for food, we should not be making those kinds of choices. Our residents should not have to make those conduct choices in a nation which is the world's richest nation,” he said.

“It just shows something where we have to pay more attention, we need to look at this differently. Not the top-down economics but more of lifting the bottom up and creating opportunities. Opportunities like entrepreneurship,” he said.

“So we need to work on economic issues, first and foremost. Then we can talk about other issues that are just as important, like voting rights. We need to ensure that everyone has the freedom and ability to vote,” Thanedar said.

(PTI)

More For You

F-35B jet

The UK has agreed to move the aircraft to the Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility at the airport.

Indian Air Force

F-35B jet still stranded in Kerala, UK sends engineers for repair

UK AVIATION engineers are arriving in Thiruvananthapuram to carry out repairs on an F-35B Lightning jet belonging to the Royal Navy, which has remained grounded after an emergency landing 12 days ago.

The jet is part of the HMS Prince of Wales Carrier Strike Group of the UK's Royal Navy. It made the emergency landing at Thiruvananthapuram airport on June 14. The aircraft, valued at over USD 110 million, is among the most advanced fighter jets in the world.

Keep ReadingShow less
Ahmedabad air crash
Relatives carry the coffin of a victim, who was killed in the Air India Flight 171 crash, during a funeral ceremony in Ahmedabad on June 15, 2025. (Photo: Getty Images)

Ahmedabad crash: Grief, denial and trauma haunt families

TWO weeks after the crash of Air India flight AI-171 in Ahmedabad, families of victims are grappling with grief and trauma. Psychiatrists are now working closely with many who continue to oscillate between denial and despair.

The crash occurred on June 12, when the London-bound flight hit the BJ Medical College complex shortly after takeoff, killing 241 people on board and 29 on the ground. Only one passenger survived.

Keep ReadingShow less
Starmer apologises for 'island of strangers' immigration speech

Prime minister Keir Starmer delivers a speech at The British Chambers of Commerce Global Annual Conference in London on June 26, 2025. (Photo by EDDIE MULHOLLAND/AFP via Getty Images)

Starmer apologises for 'island of strangers' immigration speech

PRIME MINISTER Sir Keir Starmer has admitted he was wrong to warn that Britain could become an "island of strangers" due to high immigration, saying he "deeply" regrets the controversial phrase.

Speaking to The Observer, Sir Keir said he would not have used those words if he had known they would be seen as echoing the language of Enoch Powell's notorious 1968 "rivers of blood" speech.

Keep ReadingShow less
Sir Sajid Javid leads commission 'tackling social divisions'

Sir Sajid Javid (Photo by Tom Nicholson-WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Sir Sajid Javid leads commission 'tackling social divisions'

A cross-party group has been formed to tackle the deep divisions that sparked last summer's riots across England. The new commission will be led by former Tory minister Sir Sajid Javid and ex-Labour MP Jon Cruddas.

The Independent Commission on Community and Cohesion has backing from both prime minister Sir Keir Starmer and Tory leader Kemi Badenoch. It brings together 19 experts from different political parties and walks of life.

Keep ReadingShow less
​Masum

Masum was seen on CCTV trying to steer the pram away and, when she refused to go with him, stabbed her multiple times before walking away and boarding a bus. (Photo: West Yorkshire Police)

West Yorkshire Police

Habibur Masum convicted of murdering estranged wife in front of baby

A MAN who stabbed his estranged wife to death in Bradford in front of their baby has been convicted of murder.

Habibur Masum, 26, attacked 27-year-old Kulsuma Akter in broad daylight on April 6, 2024, stabbing her more than 25 times while she pushed their seven-month-old son in a pram. The baby was not harmed.

Keep ReadingShow less