January 13, 2005



As prepared for delivery



IMPROVEMENTS TO U.S. - INDIA HIGH TECHNOLOGY RELATIONS

Remarks by  Jeff Bingaman  United States Senator  New Mexico



Confederation of Indian Industry Annual Conference  January 13, 2005

(Read out in absentia by George N. Sibley, U.S. Consul General in Calcutta)

CALCUTTA -- Let me thank the Confederation of Indian Industry, and in particular, Ms.  Kiran Pasricha, for inviting me to this Partnership Summit to share my thoughts on how to improve  the high technology relationship between India and the United States.

My remarks will revolve around three primary themes.  These are -   We should be pursuing a much greater level of interaction between India and the United  States in a whole range of science and technology areas.  Our efforts will be facilitated with the completion of the science and technology agreement  between our two countries.

One other important step, which we in the U.S. need to take, is to improve the visa  processing system so as to facilitate the exchange of people and ideas between our two countries.

IMPROVING THE U.S. - INDIA SCIENTIFIC RELATIONSHIP

India and the U.S. both have proud histories of supporting science and technology  advancement and both have major capabilities in these fields.  In India, C.V. Raman received the Nobel Prize for pioneering the technique known as Raman  scattering - a basic method to probe the atomic structure of matter based upon interactions with light.

And there are many other examples of Indian scientists providing leadership in science.  Yesterday, I visited the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore and was struck by the long-term and high-level commitment here in India to science and engineering.  It is also clear that today our countries face common challenges, which can only be  effectively met with a new commitment to find solutions through more scientific and technological  advancement.

Working together on these challenges we can make much greater progress than pursuing  them independently.  What are these “challenges” or “objectives" which I am talking about?



I will mention three examples - three areas out of the many in which I believe we should  pursue greater cooperation.

DISASTER MITIGATION

My first example is the one we have all been focused on since December 26, 2004 - how can  we better identify the nature and extent of natural disasters at the moment they occur, and how can  we mitigate the loss of life and infrastructure damage from those disasters.

India has done much to prepare for natural disasters but the recent Tsunami makes clear that  gaps exist in these preparations.  In the United States we also have made some preparations and our  scientists and engineers are anxious to work with their counterparts in India to better develop

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warning capabilities that will help both countries.  We now have satellite capability to detect earthquakes and assess their severity. We also have  the beginnings of a monitoring system based upon buoys tethered to the Pacific Ocean floor to give  early warning when damage from a Tsunami is expected.  But that early warning system needs to be expanded and improved and India has indicated it  plans to develop a warning capability for itself and countries affected by recent events in the Indian  Ocean.  This is an obvious area where cooperation can benefit us both and I am glad to see that  cooperation occurring.

ENERGY



My second example of an area in which both countries - India and the U.S. can benefit from  greater cooperation is in meeting our energy challenges.              Both India and the U.S. are heavily dependent on imported oil to meet our energy needs.  By  improving our ability to develop alternative sources of energy, store energy, and improve the  efficiency with which we use energy, we can lessen that dependence.

ENERGY PRODUCTION

Alternative sources of energy include everything from nuclear power, to coal, to biomass, to  wind energy, solar energy and hydrogen.  Each alternative has its strengths and its challenges. But I  am convinced that some combination of these alternatives will have to be developed to meet our  needs as the world supply of oil diminishes.  The sooner these technologies are developed, the  greater benefit will be achieved for all.

In the United States we are pursuing improvements in our ability to benefit from each of  these technologies, and I know that similar efforts are being made here in India.

I have seen some of the solar energy based water heaters, and water pumps, and lighting units  that are being produced here in India and the continuous improvement in their productivity which is  expected in the next few years will happen faster if we combine the talents of our best scientists and  engineers.  India can benefit from more energy produced domestically from these sources and the  U.S. can as well.

ENERGY STORAGE

In addition to the production of energy from alternative sources, it is vital that we also  develop more effective ways of storing energy for when and where it is needed.

Again, I know that research on this problem is underway in both public and private sectors in  our two countries.

But, here as in the case of technologies for energy production, it is my opinion that too low a  priority is given to this research and development and that more progress could be obtained if we  were to combine the efforts of our best scientists and engineers to meet this challenge.

ENERGY CONSERVATION

In addition to the challenges of producing and storing energy, we need to develop  technologies that will allow us to use energy more efficiently.  Advances in new and lighter  materials for use in cars and trucks can dramatically reduce the energy needed in the transportation

sector.  Advances in superconductivity can reduce the loss of energy in electric transmission lines  and even in electric distribution systems.  Advances in solid-state lighting can reduce the energy  needed to light our homes and offices.

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In these and many other ways we can use progress in science and technology to meet the  energy needs of both of our countries.  I am persuaded that the scientists and engineers in our great  laboratories in both countries would welcome the opportunity for greater cooperation.  It is up to the  leadership in business and government in both countries to make that opportunity available.

NANOTECHNOLOGY

My third example is nanotechnology.  In the United States our Department of Energy has  funded the establishment of 5 nanotechnology research centers, one of which is located in my home  state of New Mexico.              Your own Indian Institute of Science is also pursuing very advanced work in  nanotechnology.              It is very much in our joint interests that we find ways to collaborate in this important  research.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AGREEMENT

Today, the United States and India continue to discuss the details of a potential agreement on  science and technology between our two countries.              I am not one who believes that cooperation between our scientists and engineers should await  the completion of any such agreement, and obviously it is not waiting, but I also believe that each  government will give greater priority to that cooperation if we go ahead and finalize an agreement.   The U.S. has bilateral agreements of this type with over 60 nations and we should have such an  agreement with India.  I have been urging action on completing this agreement during my trip here  this week and I wanted to take this opportunity to once again urge that it be done.

VISAS

The final issue I want to mention is visa processing.  In the global marketplace, a country’s immigration system helps determine its relationship to  the international workforce.  The system can either be conducive to the free flow of ideas, workers,  and international business ventures, or it can provide disincentives to the flow of international talent.  Since September 11, the United States has adopted a number of visa policies aimed at making  the United States and the traveling public more secure.  Unfortunately, those policies have also had a  significant impact on scientific collaboration with other countries and have made it problematic for  exchange students to come to the United States with the ease they once enjoyed.   While the United States has an obligation to thoroughly vet visa applicants, we need to find  ways to do so that keep us engaged with the rest of the world.  Although problems with visa screening have been numerous, I believe we are starting to  make improvements.  It is important to both the U.S. and India that our visa processing system be made to work  properly.  Nearly 37 percent of the H-1B visas that were issued in 2003 were for specialty workers born  in India - almost 4 times that of any other country.  Similarly, India has more students studying in U.S. universities than any other country.  The  problem with visa processing is fixable, but we need to keep working on it until it is fixed.

CONCLUSION

Both India and the United States can legitimately claim to be leaders in using science and  technology to improve the lives of our citizens.  Our government and our corporate leaders have  made this the foundation for the economic strength we both enjoy.  But we have just begun to meet the challenges our two countries face.  We can succeed in  meeting those challenges sooner if we partner to do so.

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As one member of the United States Senate, I will do all that I can to encourage and support  that partnership.  I compliment the CII for its strong efforts to do so as well and I thank you all for inviting me  to your partnership summit today.

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