Hindi English Translation || Editorial || Pivot away: On U.S. student visas, Trump administration

Pivot away: On U.S. student visas, Trump administration

The squeeze (दबाव, कसाव) on U.S. student visas is indicative (सूचक, संकेतक) of right-wing (दक्षिणपंथी, रूढ़िवादी) dominance (प्रभुत्व, वर्चस्व)

Fresh appointments for U.S. student visa interviews have commenced at consulates (वाणिज्य दूतावास) as per the extended vetting (जाँच-पड़ताल, गहन परीक्षण) programme that includes rigorous (कठोर, सख्त) checking of the applicant’s social media activities. A chunk (बड़ा हिस्सा, बड़ा टुकड़ा) of visa applications is still pending at a time when the visa processing winds down and students prepare to depart (प्रस्थान करना). Fresh appointments were frozen for nearly a month until the extended vetting programme could be launched. With a wait time of more than a month, many visa applications may go down to the wire (relating to a situation whose result is unpredictable till the very last moment) as classes begin by the end (terminate, stop) of August/beginning of September. The extended vetting is only one among many disruptors (disturbance) to the flow (प्रवाह, बहाव) of Indian students to the U.S. Many other policy proposals have had a chilling (frightening, terrifying, disturbing/horrifying) effect. The Trump administration’s nominee (नामांकित व्यक्ति, उम्मीदवार) to head (नेतृत्व करना, अध्यक्षता करना) the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (अमेरिकी नागरिकता और आव्रजन सेवाएँ) has vowed (शपथ लेना, प्रतिज्ञा करना) to end the Optional Practical Training programme (OPT) (12-month work authorization available to F-1 international students who have been full-time students for at least two consecutive semesters and plan to seek employment in the United States in their fields of study) that allows students time to work in the U.S. after graduation while still on student visa, and which serves as (act as, function as) a segue (a smooth move/shift from one topic to another; smooth transition from one point to another one) toward jobs, work visas and green cards (it is officially known as a “Permanent Resident Card” and it allows a person to live and work permanently in the United States). Ending OPT will disincentivise (discourage, prevent, stop) studying in America. The Trump administration (प्रशासन, सरकार) has also said that it will provide only fixed-tenure (fixed period of time) student visas. The axing (an act of reducing costs drastically) of government spending and funding of research and other activities of higher education institutions has had its impact — there are reports of universities rescinding (cancel, reverse, invalidate, abolish, quash, revoke, overturn, nullify, overrule, repeal, annul) PhD admissions of Indian students. Anecdotal (not based on factual, scientific reports and observations done carefully; unscientific, informal, unreliable, untrustworthy) evidence points to (indicate, suggest, signal, signify, denote) a sharp decline in visa issuance (an act of issuing/providing something) in several cities and increased scrutiny (examination, inspection, investigation) of the ranking of institutions granting (issue, allocate, allot) admissions. Many of the applicants this year had begun the application process before the 2024 U.S. presidential election and, therefore, have sought to go through (undergo, be subject to, experience, withstand, put up with) the process despite the fears. Next year will truly gauge (determine, weigh, ascertain, assess, evaluate, analyse, estimate) how attractive the U.S. still is for Indian students.

When the Trump administration took office, it was felt that the worst of its anti-immigrant (voicing opposition to immigrants (non-natives, foreigners, migrants)) impulses (urge, desire, drive, compulsion) would be softened (ease, relieve, lessen, moderate, mitigate) by the tech billionaires who were supporting it. In the past, too, big business had driven (cause to happen; make, impel, prompt, force, spur) policies bringing in (include, take in, count in, involve) talented immigrant (emigrant, migrant, non-native, foreigner, settler) workers and foreign students in Republican ((in the US) a member or supporter of the Republican Party (also referred to as the GOP); conservative, right winger. Grand Old Party (GOP) refers to the Republican Party) administrations. The exit (departure, leaving, withdrawal, pull-out) of Elon Musk, however, is not a singular (single) event but part of a trend of top techies (technocrat, geek, whiz) exiting the Trump team. The cuts (reduction, decrease, lessening) on green energy (clean energy, renewable energy; energy generated from natural resources (such as water, wind & solar energy)) research in the recently passed “Big Beautiful Bill (a massive spending and tax bill that includes signature policies of President Trump’s second-term agenda. The bill was signed into law by President Trump on July 4, 2025. The bill, which will fund Trump’s immigration crackdown, make his 2017 tax cuts permanent, and is expected to knock millions of Americans off health insurance. It seeks a sharp reduction on clean energy projects)” only serve (present, provide, set out) to highlight (underscore, emphasize, underline, stress, call/draw attention to) the almost complete dominance of right-wing extremists (radical, fanatic, fundamentalist, hardliner, dogmatist, diehard, bigot, sectarian) in the administration, marked (indicate, represent, signify) by the extreme views of its leading lights (a prominent or influential person) such as Stephen Miller, White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy. The decline of the U.S. as a major attraction (interest, fascination, desirability) for Indian talent is perhaps (possibly, feasibly, may be, it may/could be, very likely) only an indicator of how much India may have to pivot away from the U.S. in other areas as well.

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.administration (noun)

Hindi Meaning - प्रशासन, सरकार
English Meaning - government, regime.

2.squeeze (noun)

Hindi Meaning - दबाव, कसाव
English Meaning - a strong demand or pressure; restriction, suppression, quelling, crushing, crackdown, clampdown.

3.indicative (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - सूचक, संकेतक
English Meaning - symptomatic, indicatory, suggestive, expressive, signalling, symbolic.

4.right-wing (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - दक्षिणपंथी, रूढ़िवादी
English Meaning - relating to a person who is following the principles of conservatism; right-winger, rightist, conservative.

5.dominance (noun)

Hindi Meaning - प्रभुत्व, वर्चस्व
English Meaning - supremacy, superiority, domination, command, control, authority, sway.

6.consulate (noun)

Hindi Meaning - वाणिज्य दूतावास
English Meaning - the office or position of a consul (diplomat/ambassador). It is a smaller diplomatic mission in that country’s major cities whereas An Embassy is situated in the capital of a country.

7.vetting (noun)

Hindi Meaning - जाँच-पड़ताल, गहन परीक्षण
English Meaning - an act of careful examination & thorough appraisal (of a person).

8.rigorous (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - कठोर, सख्त
English Meaning - strict, and stringent; painstaking, meticulous.

9.chunk (noun)

Hindi Meaning - बड़ा हिस्सा, बड़ा टुकड़ा
English Meaning - a significant/large amount of something; a thick, solid piece of something.

10.depart (verb)

Hindi Meaning - प्रस्थान करना
English Meaning - leave, go, exit.

11.flow (noun)

Hindi Meaning - प्रवाह, बहाव
English Meaning - movement, course, flux, rush.

12.nominee (noun)

Hindi Meaning - नामांकित व्यक्ति, उम्मीदवार
English Meaning - candidate, appointee, designee, delegate.

13.head (verb)

Hindi Meaning - नेतृत्व करना, अध्यक्षता करना
English Meaning - lead, direct, govern, administer.

14.U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (noun)

Hindi Meaning - अमेरिकी नागरिकता और आव्रजन सेवाएँ
English Meaning - it is responsible for processing immigration and naturalization applications and establishing policies regarding immigration services.

15.vow (verb)

Hindi Meaning - शपथ लेना, प्रतिज्ञा करना
English Meaning - promise, swear, commit, avow, affirm.

16.end (verb)

English Meaning - terminate, stop.

17.pivot away (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - change direction, change focus, deviate from, divert from, move away from.

18.wind down (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - come to an end, draw to a close, wind up, close down.

19.frozen past tense of freeze (verb)

English Meaning - limit, restrict, confine; stop/suspend, stand still, become paralyzed.

20.down to the wire (phrase)

English Meaning - relating to a situation whose result is unpredictable till the very last moment.

21.disruptor (noun)

English Meaning - disturbance.

22.chilling (adjective)

English Meaning - frightening, terrifying, disturbing/horrifying.

23.immigration (noun)

English Meaning - the act of leaving one’s countries and moving to another country of which they are not natives, nor citizens, to settle or reside there, especially as permanent residents or naturalized citizens.

24.Optional Practical Training programme (OPT) (noun)

English Meaning - 12-month work authorization available to F-1 international students who have been full-time students for at least two consecutive semesters and plan to seek employment in the United States in their fields of study.

25.serve as (verb)

English Meaning - act as, function as.

26.segue (noun)

English Meaning - a smooth move/shift from one topic to another; smooth transition from one point to another one.

27.H-1B visa (noun)

English Meaning - it permits a foreign professional (with a (min. 4 years) university degree or its equivalent) to work in specialty occupations (or skilled employments) in the United States (issued for a max of 6 years in total).

28.green card (noun)

English Meaning - it is officially known as a “Permanent Resident Card” and it allows a person to live and work permanently in the United States.

29.disincentivise (verb)

English Meaning - discourage, prevent, stop.

30.fixed-tenure (noun)

English Meaning - fixed period of time.

31.axing (noun)

English Meaning - an act of reducing costs drastically.

32.government spending or public spending (noun)

English Meaning - money spent by the government.

33.rescind (verb)

English Meaning - cancel, reverse, invalidate, abolish, quash, revoke, overturn, nullify, overrule, repeal, annul.

34.anecdotal (adjective)

English Meaning - not based on factual, scientific reports and observations done carefully; unscientific, informal, unreliable, untrustworthy.

35.point to (verb)

English Meaning - indicate, suggest, signal, signify, denote.

36.issuance (noun)

English Meaning - an act of issuing/providing something.

37.scrutiny (noun)

English Meaning - examination, inspection, investigation.

38.grant (verb)

English Meaning - issue, allocate, allot.

39.sought past tense of seek (verb)

English Meaning - ask for, request, appeal, demand.

40.go through (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - undergo, be subject to, experience, withstand, put up with.

41.gauge (verb)

English Meaning - determine, weigh, ascertain, assess, evaluate, analyse, estimate.

42.take office (phrase)

English Meaning - assume an office, be sworn in, enter office.

43.anti-immigrant (adjective)

English Meaning - voicing opposition to immigrants (non-natives, foreigners, migrants).

44.impulse (noun)

English Meaning - urge, desire, drive, compulsion.

45.soften (verb)

English Meaning - ease, relieve, lessen, moderate, mitigate.

46.drive (verb)

English Meaning - cause to happen; make, impel, prompt, force, spur.

47.bring in (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - include, take in, count in, involve.

48.immigrant (noun)

English Meaning - emigrant, migrant, non-native, foreigner, settler.

49.Republican (noun)

English Meaning - (in the US) a member or supporter of the Republican Party (also referred to as the GOP); conservative, right winger. Grand Old Party (GOP) refers to the Republican Party.

50.exit (noun)

English Meaning - departure, leaving, withdrawal, pull-out.

51.singular (adjective)

English Meaning - single.

52.techie (noun)

English Meaning - technocrat, geek, whiz.

53.cut (noun)

English Meaning - reduction, decrease, lessening.

54.green energy (noun)

English Meaning - clean energy, renewable energy; energy generated from natural resources (such as water, wind & solar energy).

55.Big Beautiful Bill (noun)

English Meaning - a massive spending and tax bill that includes signature policies of President Trump’s second-term agenda. The bill was signed into law by President Trump on July 4, 2025. The bill, which will fund Trump’s immigration crackdown, make his 2017 tax cuts permanent, and is expected to knock millions of Americans off health insurance. It seeks a sharp reduction on clean energy projects.

56.serve (verb)

English Meaning - present, provide, set out.

57.highlight (verb)

English Meaning - underscore, emphasize, underline, stress, call/draw attention to.

58.extremist (noun)

English Meaning - radical, fanatic, fundamentalist, hardliner, dogmatist, diehard, bigot, sectarian.

59.mark (verb)

English Meaning - indicate, represent, signify.

60.leading light (noun)

English Meaning - a prominent or influential person.

61.attraction (noun)

English Meaning - interest, fascination, desirability.