Calls grow for India to lure tech talent home as US tightens job curbs

After completing a master’s degree in data science at Pace University in New York in May last year, Tarun returned to India in October, saying frequent changes in US visa rules and employer sponsorship requirements had made it difficult for him to find a job in the world’s largest economy.

Tarun, who is from the southern Indian city of Tirupati, felt returning home was a more prudent move than pursuing a job in the US indefinitely.

“I got a job within one month here [Bengaluru] with an American engineering company,” he said, without giving further details about his job. “At the end of the day, my decision is about my happiness. I am close to my friends and family.”

Tarun’s experience mirrors a debate over whether growing uncertainty surrounding US immigration rules could spur more Indian professionals to return home, with prominent figures in India’s tech industry weighing in on the issue.