Ivanka at GES: Women's presence in tech, science, other sectors need a push

'McKinsey study says that India can add $700 billion to our GDP if we bridge the gender gap', Chanda Kochhar said

Policy changes are needed to encourage more women to enter high-growth fields, including science and technology, said speakers led by Ivanka Trump, advisor and daughter to the United States (US) President Donald Trump, at the Global Entrepreneurship Summit on Wednesday.

Participating in a discussion on the topic — We Can Do It! Innovations in Workforce Development and Skills Training — Ivanka Trump said the policies aimed at closing the gender wage gap in the industry have stagnated in the US and successive Presidents have been trying to change the situation.

ALSO READ: GES summit 2017: 10 key takeaways from Narendra Modi, Ivanka Trump speeches

“All the women are working women, whether they are working to raise their families or working in a professional field. Out of every dollar earned by women, 90 cents are invested back into their families and community. Unfortunately, women participated in sectors that are undervalued and underpaid financially," Ivanka said.

In the US, only 24 per cent women represent computer professionals and 13 per cent of entrepreneurs are women. The US Government is currently working to bring more women into STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education in order to bridge the gap, added Ivanka.

ICICI Bank Managing Director Chanda Kochhar said — education, encouragement and empowerment — are the three most important aspects to make women succeed in business and career. She said India has made great strides in women empowerment and that has been reflected in the presence and achievements of women in many fields, including sports, defence and politics.

ALSO READ: GES 2017: Invest in India-for India, says Modi; Ivanka bats for women power

"India has come a long way and has realised that there is a lot more to do. Not even 25 per cent of the graduating women participate in the workforce. McKinsey study says that India can add $700 billion to our GDP if we bridge the gender gap," Kochhar said.

Cherie Blair, the wife of former United Kingdom (UK) Prime Minister and founder of Cherie Blair Foundation for Women, said there was no need for women to feel inferior to men as they will be far superior to men in many aspects if they get access to technology.

"We have to find solutions to enable women to perform better at what they do without giving up on their enterprises. Capacity, confidence, capital are the three things women entrepreneurs need to flourish. Its all about choice and diversity, as well as, about respecting each other's choices," Blair said. (more)

Women first, prosperity for all: What we know of Ivanka's GES 2017 agenda

The Global Entrepreneurship Summit is being held for the first time in South Asia in Hyderabad

US President Donald Trump's daughter and adviser Ivanka Trump arrived in India amid tight security early on Tuesday to attend the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES), beginning here later in the day. Speaking a day ahead of the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES), Ivanka Trump said, "as the world's largest democracies... there is much we can and should do together. We share common priorities, including promoting economic growth and reform, fighting terrorism, and expanding security cooperation."

The Global Entrepreneurship Summit is being held for the first time in South Asia in Hyderabad, India, from November 28-30. The event will comprise a line- up showcasing abundant talent, stories of perseverance with a dash of glamour.

Here's all you need to know:

Inaugural session

The inaugural session will be addressed by Prime Minister Modi, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and Ivanka Trump. Following this, a session will be moderated by John Chambers, Chairman Emeritus, Cisco.

This will see the participation of Ivanka Trump, Sibongile Sambo, Managing Director of SRS Aviation and SRS Petroleum and Marcus Wallenberg, the Chairman of Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken (SEB).

Indian bigwigs to attend dinner at Hyderabad's Falaknuma Palace

Hyderabad's Falaknuma Palace has the world's largest dining hall. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host the White House advisor Ivanka Trump at this luxurious palace today. The who’s who of India Inc, including Reliance Group Chairman Mukesh Ambani, Godrej Group Chairman Adi Godrej and Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani would attend the dinner, according to officials. PM Modi and Ms Trump will dine at the Hyderabad Nizam's famous '101 Dining Hall' that can seat can seat 101 guests at a time.

GES 2017 - Day 2

On the second day of GES 2017, Ivanka Trump will be part of a discussion on increasing women in the workforce through skills training, education, and mentorship. Innovators in workforce development and training will discuss what works and what more can be done to open doors for women at the workplace. (more)

Company News : In a blow to tech Industry, Trump shelves start-up immigrant rule

The decision was quickly slammed by business leaders and organizations

Company News : The Trump administration said it would delay, and probably eliminate down the line, a federal rule that would have let foreign entrepreneurs come to the United States to start companies.

The decision, announced by the federal government on Monday ahead of its official publication on Tuesday, was quickly slammed by business leaders and organizations, especially from the technology sector, which has benefited heavily from start-ups founded by immigrants.

“Today’s announcement is extremely disappointing and represents a fundamental misunderstanding of the critical role immigrant entrepreneurs play in growing the next generation of American companies,” Bobby Franklin, the president and chief executive of the National Venture Capital Association, a trade association for start-up investors, said in a statement.

He added that even as other countries are going all out to attract entrepreneurs, “the Trump administration is signaling its intent to do the exact opposite.”

The policy being delayed by the Department of Homeland Security, known as the International Entrepreneur Rule, was to go into effect next week, after being approved by President Obama in January during his final days in office.

The rule was enacted to give foreign entrepreneurs who received significant financial backing for new business ventures the ability to come temporarily to the United States to build their companies. Silicon Valley leaders had praised the rule as a kind of “start-up visa.”

The department said it would delay the start date of the rule until March 14 of next year, during which time it will seek public comments on a plan to rescind the rule. The department said it decided to delay the rule after President Donald Trump signed an executive order on improvements to border security and immigration enforcement on Jan. 25, shortly after taking office.

The order required the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security to take action to ensure that "parole authority” — through which the department can temporarily allow individuals into the country without being formally admitted with a visa — be used only on a case-by-case basis and “when an individual demonstrates urgent humanitarian reasons or a significant public benefit derived from such parole.”

The International Entrepreneur Rule was designed to use that authority to effectively give a lift to start-ups. Under the Obama administration, the Department of Homeland Security estimated that nearly 3,000 entrepreneurs would be eligible to come to the United States annually under the rule. They were to be granted stays of up to 30 months, with the chance of extending the stays another 30 months if the entrepreneurs met certain criteria.

To qualify, they had to show that they had raised $250,000 or more for their businesses from established American investors or $100,000 or more in grants from government entities.

Steve Case, an investor who was a founder of AOL, blasted the decision on Twitter. “Big mistake,” he wrote. “Immigrant entrepreneurs are job makers, not job takers.”

Gary Shapiro, chief executive of the Consumer Technology Association, a trade group representing the consumer technology industry, said the delay of the rule would damage American innovation and job creation.

“The 44 immigrant-founded billion-dollar start-ups now in the U.S. have created an average of 760 American jobs per company,” Mr. Shapiro said in a statement. “Without these immigrant entrepreneurs, it is unlikely America would stand as the beacon of innovation that it is today.”

Hillary Clinton launches new political action group to fight Trump

'Onward Together' to encourage people to organise and run for office, writes Hillary

Former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has launched a new political action organisation to fight against US President Donald Trump's agenda and raise funds for five prominent progressive groups.

"I believe more fiercely than ever that citizen engagement at every level is central to a strong and vibrant democracy," Clinton said announcing the launch of her group 'Onward Together'.

"More than ever, I believe citizen engagement is vital to our democracy. I'm so inspired by everyone stepping up to organise and lead," the former Secretary of State, said to her supporters as she urged them to contribute to the "remarkable" spirit of political activism.

Maruti Suzuki Dzire 2017: Top 10 highlights from price to fuel efficiency

The announcement comes as Clinton, 69, works to find a new role in an evolving political landscape.

The new group's website said it aimed to advance progressive values and reminded visitors that Clinton had won nearly 66 million votes in November's showdown with Trump.

"Onward Together will work to build a brighter future for generations to come by supporting groups that encourage people to organise and run for office," wrote the former Secretary of State.

Clinton becomes the latest high-profile Democrat to launch an independent group. Former President Barack Obama, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, and 2004 Democratic nominee Howard Dean all helped create political organisations. Read more

'I am scared': How the US has become a problem for Indians in Trump's era

Hate crimes,violent attacks, rising xenophobia mar the Indian experience in the US

Equality and the American dream seem to be increasingly out of reach for many Indians in the U.S., since President Donald Trump took office. The past several months have worried many people across the world, and Indians were especially alarmed to learn about the apparently racially motivated murder of Indian engineer Srinivas Kuchibhotla. Meanwhile, the White House continues to push a controversial “Muslim ban,” battling the U.S. court system.

As a result, more and more people in India have reportedly begun advising their friends and relatives against visiting the United States, whether for work or study.

Kuchibhotla was shot to death in a Kansas bar this February, and subsequent attacks on other Indians followed in what the website SocialistWorker.org has called a “wave of violence against South Asians.”

Donald Trump vows to mediate peace between Israel, Palestine

Trump's critics say his rhetoric is partly responsible for energising hate groups who then target Latin Americans, Muslims, African Americans, and the LGBT community.

On Feb. 28, Kuchibhotla's widow, Sunayana Dumala, published an emotional letter on Facebook about her husband's death, stating her desire to remain in the U.S. and continue his dreams:

"We built our dream home, which he painted, and installed the garage door. Doing any kind of work on his home gave him immense joy. This was the home that he had built […] for us and any kids we would have. [It was] our first step to starting our family. It's so unfortunate that this dream of ours is now shattered." Read more

Trump appoints Indian-American Raj Shah to key White House position

Shah played a leading role in the Republican party's anti-Clinton campaign during polls

Latest News : US President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday appointed young Indian-American Raj Shah, who played a leading role in the Republican party's anti-Clinton campaign during polls, to a key White House position.

Shah, whose parents immigrated to the US from Gujarat, has been appointed as Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Communication Director and Research Director, according to an announcement made by the Presidential Transition Team.

Shah, who is in his early 30s, is currently head of Opposition Research in the Republican National Committee.

In this position, he led a team of experts to carry out research against Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidential candidate. Shah was behind all the anti-Clinton campaign during the presidential elections.

The announcement of Shah's appointment to this key White House position was made by incoming White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus along with other appointments.

"These individuals will be key leaders in helping to implement the President elect's agenda and bring real change to Washington," Priebus said.Read more.

Has the US Presidential election cast a shadow on Black Friday 2016?

As US President-elect Donald Trump gears up to take office from the 44th and current President of the United States, pundits are having a field day trying to estimate the impact that will likely have on the US citizens. Among the immediate concerns is the impact the election result will have on the holiday spending, especially Black Friday on November 25, 2016.

While some are ambivalent about it, most media reports have indicated that Black Friday might not see as spectacular spending as expected. According to a news article, this year, Veterans Day - the first peak of several peak spending days during the holiday season – failed to kick off holiday spending. It was reported that the sales were $380 million lower than expected, at $1.16 billion. Quoting Adobe Digital Insights, the report indicated that the sales registered a measly 1% growth over a year earlier, against the predicted growth of 16%.

Another report quoting data from Adobe says that between November 1 and November 14, retailers have lost over $800 million in revenue from online sales. The sharpest drop occurred after the election, with total sales growth slowing to only 1.3%, against Adobe's prediction for growth of 7.8%.

What’s Black Friday?

The day following Thanksgiving Day in the United States, Black Friday marks the beginning of the Christmas shopping season. Since 1932, on the fourth Thursday of November, most major retailers in the US open very early – as early as overnight hours - and offer promotional sales.

Touted as the busiest shopping day of the year since 2005, the term Black Friday was coined in 1961. It represented the point in the year when retailers begin to turn a profit, thus going from being "in the red" to being "in the black".

But Black Friday as the kickoff to the holiday spending season has not been a real trend in retail for many years now. Many retailers have now spread out their promotions over full months of November and December, rather than concentrate them on a single shopping day or weekend.

Trumping over Black Friday. Read more.

Will take $1 a year as US President, says Trump

The 70-year-old US President-elect also said that he will not take any vacations during his four-year term

US President-elect Donald Trump has said he would take $1 as his salary a year and not the $400,000 that comes with the US president's job and will refrain from going on any vacation.

Asked whether he was going avail the president's salary, 70-year-old Trump said, "No, I'm not gonna take the salary. I'm not taking it," confirming a promise he made in a campaign video in September.

"I think I have to by law take $1, so I'll take $1 a year. But I don't even know what it is," Trump told CBS's "60 Minute" in an interview.

Trump said he did not know what the salary of a US President is and also said he would not take any vacation.

"We have so much work. There's so much work to be done. And I want to get it done for the people," he said.

"I want to get it done. We're lowering taxes, we're taking care of health care. I mean, there's just so much to be done. So I don't think we'll be very big on vacations, no," Trump said, ruling out a vacation for himself.Read more

See here some latest articles about Donald Trump:

• Barack Obama is smart, has great sense of humour: President-elect Donald Trump
• 'H-1B visas lifeline to the global talent', Trump urged to reform the system
• Amma is back, Modi in tears, Trump's $1 pay: 5 key developments of the day
• Authoritarianism may return to the White House with Donald Trump

Donald Trump vows to immediately deport up to 3 million undocumented immigrants

Donald Trump vows to immediately deport up to 3 million undocumented immigrants

In line with his hardline immigration stance, President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to immediately deport up to three million undocumented immigrants, saying "we are getting them out of our country or we are going to incarcerate".

"What we are going to do is get the people that are criminal and have criminal records, gang members, drug dealers, where a lot of these people, probably two million, it could be even three million, we are getting them out of our country or we are going to incarcerate," Trump told CBS News.

"But we're getting them out of our country, they're here illegally," the 70-year-old business tycoon-turned politician said in an excerpt released ahead of broadcast of the interview.

During the election campaign, Trump had warned that those countries which do not accept these illegal immigrants, he would enforce the legal provision of stopping of issuing of visas to people of those countries.

There are an estimated 11 million documented immigrants in the country. Several hundred thousand are believed to be Indian-Americans.

The President-elect said he would take a call on the fate of the rest of the illegal immigrants, after the border is secured.

"After the border is secure and after everything gets normalised, we're going to make a determination on the people that they're talking about who are terrific people, they're terrific people but we are gonna make a determination at that," Trump said. Read more

What Donald Trump as America's 45th President means for India

Bucking media opposition, popular perception and Hillary Clinton’s vicious campaign, Donald Trump has emerged as the 45th president of the United States of America. Trump elucidated on his 15-point agenda in the run-up to the elections. If he decides to implement them, it could impact the Indian government, people and businesses in several ways.

Here is a lowdown on the implications Trump’s policies as the US President could have for India.

1) The Tax Plan: One of the highlights of Trump’s economic campaign is his plan to reduce corporate tax rates in the U.S to 15%. At present the rate stands at 35%. This would make the U.S one of the most attractive destinations in the world for businesses, especially for American businesses that have set shop in other countries to improve their profitability by paying less taxes. If Trump were to implement this plan, U.S businesses in India could be lured back to American soil. Take the case of Ford Motors. Trump has repeatedly flayed Ford during his campaign for moving manufacturing outside U.S especially to Mexico in a bid to circumvent high taxes. Now Ford India has been making good progress in India. Its manufacturing unit in Chennai recorded its highest ever exports this August. Ford India exported 67% of all its vehicles manufactured in India. In addition, it made a substantial investment in the growing business of car rentals in India by investing in Zoomcar. For all the money Ford India earns, it pays the same corporate tax rate inIndia as it does in the U.S. If Trump were to come true on his promise to slash corporate tax to 15%, Ford India could well be tempted to move a part of its revenue earning processes back to Chicago from Chennai. That would be bad news for over 2000 employees working at the Ford factory in India. Trump’s massive tax cut would more than offset the advantages of cheap labour that India provides to Ford. Other American businesses in India could be tempted to do the same.(more)

US presidential election 2016 results

US Election 2016: Hillary Clinton has 70 per cent chance of winning, says pollster

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has a 70 per cent chance of winning the White House race against her Republican rival Donald Trump, a top American pollster has said on the eve of what is being described as the most crucial election in decades.

"Hillary Clinton has a 70 per cent chance of winning the election," said FiveThirtyEight website's Nate Silver, who accurately predicted the outcome of 2008 and 2012 presidential elections.

This is up from a 65 per cent chance on Sunday night, so Clinton, 69, has had a good run in the polls in the final days of the campaign, he said.(more)

Trump beating Clinton in Google searches

Donald Trump might be trailing in surveys but the Republican nominee is more popular than his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton in Google searches in the US.

Data released by Google shows Trump dominating search in 38 states till Monday, including in the battleground states of Florida and Michigan.

Google data also shows that immigration is the top Trump-related search topic, followed by abortion and race issues, Fox News reported.(more)

US Presidential polls: Voters comes out in large numbers, 46.2 million votes already cast

A record 46.2 million of the estimated 200 million voter shave exercised their franchise in the 2016 US presidential elections before the official voting day, surpassing the 2012 record when 32.3 million people had voted in advance.

Experts said the massive turn out in 2016 general elections in early voting reflects the change in the voting patterns of Americans.

"Some voters are clearly changing as they opted to vote early instead of the election day," said Michael McDonald, an early-voting expert who runs the elections project.(more)

Live blog : US presidential election 2016 results