the great indian trivalley debate

I wasnt supposed to blog for a while.. but a recent comment by my mom over her phone where she was like "beta USA is no longer good for Indian students" actually forced my hand.. that and an obnoxious experiment that I have to baby sit..

So trivalley university.. lets see, this problem of diploma mills is an age old american problem. The easiest and legal route to immigrate to US is through F1 visa. in terms of requirement, the only thing you need is an I20 and proof of funds for your education and presto chango your green card wet dreams are fulfilled.. It has become easier these days to secure proof of funds. I recently read somewhere that per capita income in India has risen to Rs 50k which is quite bit much.. The problem remains obtaining an I20. As with any capitalist economy, demand creates supply and preto chango we have educational consultants in India like Jambooree, some random guy in malviya nagar (in delhi) who gurantees you admits for Rs 1 lakh (his game is you apply to five schools and you get atleast two options´) and scores of shady shops on upper floors of nehru place.. these fraudsters are not regulated and neither are their practices put on paper.

I was nearly duped by jamboreee at new delhi. I could see what they were doing.. Inflated CV, over exaggerated personal statements.. they bascially lie on students behalf, not tellin them of the consequences that happen when you lie.. but this isnt the worse thing they do.. Some of them also exact a commission from multiple such diploma mills.. they tell students that if they apply to atleast 5 schools of their choice, their admission is 'guranteed'. Now if 21 + year olds think that they cannot be held accountable for such a transaction then they are sadly mistaken. Their defence that they were granted valid visas does not protect them from culpability from this fraud. There are 300+ universities offering higher education in US. if you choose a place just cause its in california or there are 1000 students there from your state, then you are inviting trouble from the outset. selecting a school ranked top 100 in US news ( ranking available freely online ) gurantees that you are going into a valid program. As far as these students possessing valid US visas goes, when you put a dense sludge on a fine sieve, some particulate is bound to get through. And then these students also misunderstand what a visa is. Strictly speaking, a F1 visa is a letter requesting entry to US soil. Entry is given provided they havent falsified any information and will uphold the law of the land. A sovereign nation has all rights to protect its boundries and punish those who break the law of the land. who will be to blame if some of these students cross mexican border from texas or california for example?? Arent foreign nationals engaged in drug trade prosecuted in India?? Thos who become victims of violent crimes every year do their governments interefere in the functioning of the law of land in India?? the answer is a big NO

If anything, I think the US government has treated these kids with dignity and respect.. putting them in a detention center with hardened criminals would have put them in the way of far more eggregious harm than minor discomfort of wearning an electronic tracking device. Its upto the Government of India and Indian media to stop being a cry baby and probe how did 1500 students from AP ended up in a single University.. who is the front of this racket here in India?? Its high time, we look at our own mess which gets dumped elsewhere