With 1,964 H-1B visas in 2009, Indian IT major Wipro has topped the list of firms that got the coveted US visas for highly skilled professionals. Microsoft with 1,318 visas came next, with Intel (723) in third place, while Google with 211 in 25th place brought up the rear. IBM India (695), Infosys (440), Polaris Software Lab India (254) and Satyam (219) were the other major Indian visa getters. At... 

The United States continued to lead the global IT industry competitiveness ranking in an annual survey by the Economist Intelligence Unit, followed by Finland, Sweden and Canada. India stands at the 44th spot in global IT competitiveness index. The prominence of Finland, Sweden, Canada and the Netherlands in the index’s top tier was helped most by their robust IT infrastructure and strong support... 

The US state department said on Friday it was prepared to hold direct talks with North Korea to try to coax it back into multilateral negotiations on ending its nuclear programs. Previously, US officials had sent mixed signals about direct meetings, at times saying Pyongyang must first commit to resume multilateral discussions and at others saying bilateral talks could only occur “in the context”... 

The World Health Organisation is urging the planet to brace for a second wave of the swine flu pandemic as the heavily populated northern hemisphere edges towards the cooler season when flu thrives. “The WHO is still mobilised and worried,” spokesman Gregory Hartl said as the global health watchdog kept an anxious eye on some “mysterious” patterns of illness associated with... 

Washington, July 17 (ANI): The United States has once again clarified that it would not appoint any special envoy to address the Kashmir issue between India and Pakistan, and that the conflict should be resolved by the two neighbouring countries itself. Addressing South Asian journalists at a briefing here, US Assistant Secretary of State for Central and South Asian Affairs, Robert Blake said Washington,... 

Sharm-el-Sheikh (Egypt), July 16 (ANI): Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh held bilateral meetings with his Bangladeshi and Vietnamese counterparts — Sheikh Hasina and Nguyen Tan Dung respectively on the sidelines of the XVth Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Summit here on Wednesday. Leaders of developing states that make up NAM had earlier said the world needs a financial system that is fairer to... 

Islamabad, July 15 (ANI): The United States is working out a new strategy to reduce tensions with Pakistan over the drone strikes. The Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia, Paul Jones, told the US Congress recently, that Washington is planning to broaden its public relations initiatives in Pakistan to enable it to understand the US tactics. Islamabad, July 15 (ANI): The United... 

Washington, July 8 (ANI): Biologists have determined that a 700-mile security wall under construction along the United States’ border with Mexico could significantly alter the movement and “connectivity” of wildlife, with the animals’ potential isolation a threat to populations of some species. However, technology and alterations to the design could dramatically improve the... 

Islamabad, July 7 (ANI) :  Cricketer-turned politician, Imran Khan has charged the PPP-led  government of being subservient to the United States, saying that government has rented out the country’s army to the US in exchange of 1.5 billion dollars. “We have rented our military out to US in exchange of mere 1.5 billion dollars while US is spending sixty billion dollars on its army comprising... 

London, July 7 (ANI): A team of scientists has applied ecological niche modelling to predict the mythical Bigfoot’s favorite haunts in the United States. Conservation biologists often need to predict where rare species are capable of living – for selecting the best site for a national park, for example, or forecasting how badly a species’ range will suffer as the climate changes... 

Washington, July 2 (ANI): The United States has decided to freeze the assets of three Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) commanders, who were supposedly behind the November 2008 Mumbai carnage. Sanctions would also be imposed on an Al-Qaeda backer, Ameen Al-Peshawari, The Nation reports. According to the US Treasury, three top LeT commanders, Arif Qasmani, Mohammed Yahya Mujahid, and Nasir Javaid played an important... 

New York, July 2 (ANI): The goodwill the United States was hoping to garner from the thousands of displaced people in the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) of Pakistan, in return for aid being doled out by it, is being sabotaged by banned outfits such as the Jamaat-ud-Daawa (JuD) and other radical charities. The United States, which is providing huge humanitarian aid to Pakistan, aims to wean away... 

Islamabad, June 11 (ANI): The United States has handed over four MI-17 cargo helicopters to the Pakistan Army to facilitate its counter-terrorism operation. “On a request by the Government of Pakistan, the United States delivered four MI-17 cargo helicopters to the Pakistani Army,” US embassy spokesman Lou Finor said here. Meanwhile, US Consulate personnel in Peshawar have been instructed to limit... 

Washington, June 11 (ANI): A 88-year-old White supremacist walked into the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum with his rifle and shot a security guard before shooting himself on Wednesday. Law enforcement officials identified the gunman as James W. von Brunn, who embraces various conspiracy theories involving Jews, Blacks and other minority groups and at one point waged a personal war with the... 

United Nations, June 11 (ANI): The five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) – The United States, Britain, China, Russia and France — have agreed to impose tough new sanctions on North Korea after that conducted its second nuclear test last month. According to diplomats, a draft resolution puts Pyongyang on notice, saying that the UNSC does not approve of its continued...